Heartwarming Story Of How a Kashmiri Pandit and a Muslim Girl Became Sisters

My name is Varuna Raina. During a recent trip to Gulmarg, I had my first brush with skiing and when I saw the sleek skiis, the heavy boots and the poles wading through snow, I knew I had to try it out. Before I knew, I had enrolled at the Basic Skiing Course at IISM, Gulmarg. Having been an avid trekker, the charisma of skiing appealed to me quite naturally. In the second week of March, I arrived in Gulmarg when the snows were thin and that’s where it all began. Over the course of 2 weeks, we were supposed to stay with batchmates from all ages, some as young as 10 or less. I didn’t know what to expect much less about forming any kind of camaraderie. Being a Kashmiri Pandit myself, I was there for more than just skiing. Kashmir is home for me, whether I’m with friends, strangers or alone.

As I entered the room, there were two young kids and I gasped at the idea of sharing room with them. And then I noticed a young and reserved girl at one corner of the room. After saying Hi, I found out that she was a Kashmiri Muslim and from the word go, we felt like old friends. Language is one bond that always brings people together, and once we started conversing in Kashmiri, we had everyone else trying to understand our chatter! Needless to say, we both were elated to have each other as roommates. My other roommate was my batchmate from Himalayan Mountaineering Institute (HMI) where I had done Basic Mountaineering Course (BMC) earlier.