Tag Archives: Ateeqa Bano

Atiqa Bano’s Meeras Mahal heritage museum to be refurbished

April 27, 2022Amazing Feats, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Museums, Libraries (wef. April 16th, 2022), Women/Girls(since May26-2021), World OpinionAetiqa Bano, ALIPH, Ateeqa Bano, Ateeqa Bano - Director of Libraries & Joint Director Education in Jammu & Kashmir, Ateeqa Bano - Founder - Meeras Mahal, Ghulam Mohammad Hanfi, Indian Muslims, Jammu & Kashmir Muslims, Meeras Mahal, Meeras Mahal - First Private Museum in the J & K Valley, Meeras Mahal - Private Museum - Kashmir, Muslims of India, Muslims of Jammu & Kashmir, Muzamil Bashir Masoodi, Saima Iqbal, Saleem Beg, Saleem Beg - Head - Kashmir Chapter of INTACHmpositiveone@gmail.com

Sophore (Suvyyapur) Town (Baramulla District), JAMMU & KASHMIR :

Atiqa Bano’s vision that the generations to come must know how people lived in Kashmir over centuries had made this retired Kashmiri educationist collect ancient households articles like hey mats (Waguv), multipurpose earthen pots, wooden doors, latches, and possibly all things used by humans over two centuries and create the first-ever private museum in the Valley.

Called “Meras Mahal” (The palace of heritage), it houses more than 5,000 artifacts reflecting the social and cultural life of Kashmir over two centuries.

**Atiqa Bano standing in front of Meeras Mahal**

Atiqa Bano passed away in 2017 and her family continued to struggle to maintain it and not let forces of Nature damage this treasure trove. However, they always lacked resources for this gigantic task.

Finally, Atiqa Bano’s love of her labour is all set for a major revamp and scientific conservation as this historic treasure had attracted the attention of the Indian National Trust for Art and Heritage (INTACH), J&K Chapter.

Atiqa Bano, an educationist, had made great efforts to collect the exhibits over two decades after she retired from the J&K Government services in 1998. A woman of strong resolve, Atiqaji, as she was popularly called, had taken to looking after her father after her mother’s death. She had chosen to remain single and devote her life to education, women’s welfare, and society.

**Household items on display in Meeras Mahal**

It was during her campaigns for women’s empowerment that she was drawn to the collection of rare kitchenware, old ornaments, agricultural tools, clothing, earthenware, and manuscripts lying around in many Kashmiri households. It dawned upon her that with the changing times, all these human inventions would be lost to time if not preserved for posterity.

She started collecting artifacts in 2002 and continued her mission till her death.

Atiqa Bano is gone from this world, but her memory and work is commemorated for posterity, and, as she wished, for the generations to come.

**A collection of watches and eye glasses on display at Meeras Mahal**

Realizing the importance of Atiqaji’s rich heritage collection, the J&K Chapter of INTACH and HELP Foundation have taken up the gigantic task of rejuvenating Meeras Mahal.

Saleem Beg, head of the INTACH, J&K Chapter, said, “Saima Iqbal and INTACH team are digitizing, curating and contextualizing the rich collection of vernacular objects after preventive conservation. The museum will have a thematic display demonstrated through sketches and write-ups supported by an elaborate digital presence.”

Saima Iqbal said, the work, supported by ALIPH- an international alliance for the protection of heritage in conflict areas, is getting streamlined. She stated that a team comprising a web designer, photographer, conservator, curator, and illustrator is working in tandem as all are interdependent and need to work in sync.

**Earthenware used in Kashmiri households in Meeras Mahal**

“I have to say that the challenges are many and we are making the best use of available meager resources here but the passion is alive and the project will be a great success”, she said.

“The first article preserved in the museum is Kondul, an earthen bowl that holds smoldering embers in Kangri, a personal and portable heating device of Kashmiri, said Muzamil Bashir Masoodi, Caretaker or (Honorary) President of the five-member Trust of prominent literary personalities, constituted to look after the museum.

Muzamil, who is also Atiqa Ji’s nephew had been taking a keen interest in maintaining and preserving the rare articles of the museum. The initially preserved items also included hand-written books of Ghulam Mohammad Hanfie, a scholar, Ateeqa Ji’s grandfather.

“All the items are counted one by one like 10 different Charkhas (spinning wheels) are counted as 10 separate items”, explained Muzamil.

The museum was initially set up in their private B. Ed College, Kashmir Women’s College of Education, at Noorbagh, Sopore. It was shifted in 2012 and called Meeras Mahal to a Hostel building of the College, at Highland Colony, where the rare items are “stored” due to the paucity of space.

**Doors and windows used in Kashmiri architecture**

Muzammil said that “we cannot provide the normal gap of at least two feet between the items”, which makes it difficult to maintain the entire treasure. “There has been no support from the Government”, he said. He said so far he has been getting a token amount from the college funds for maintaining the museum.

“During the Covid restrictions, when everything was closed, we managed to be in the museum to provide basic maintenance,” Muzamil said. He had submitted a detailed project report, for conservation and preservation of the museum to the UT Government in 2019.”

Nothing has came his way so far.

source: http://www.awazthevoice.in / Awaz, The Voice / Home> Culture / by Ehsan Fazli, Srinagar / April 11th, 2022

Ateeqa Bano And Her Collected Pieces Of History | #IndianWomenInHistory

October 27, 2018Amazing Feats, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Travel & TourismArshie Qureshi, Arshie Qureshi - Journalist, Ateeqa Bano, Ateeqa Bano - Director of Libraries & Joint Director Education in Jammu & Kashmir, Ateeqa Bano - Founder - Meeras Mahal, Atiqa Bano, Maryam Masoodimpositiveone@gmail.com

Sophore, Srinagar , JAMMU &KASHMIR :

In the summer of 2014, as I walked past colourful stalls at Srinagar’s exhibition ground, the quiet and less colourful one in a corner caught my attention. Its tables were decorated with vintage Kashmiri crafts, coins, and manuscripts. The stall belonged to Meeras Mahal, a privately run museum.

As I and a fellow acquaintance went closer, we were warmly welcomed by an elderly woman. She made us sit and introduced herself humbly. “Ateeqa Bano, founder of Meeras Mahal,” she said. She walked us through the collection and told us stories about her journeys to get each of these artefacts.

Ateeqa’s narration clearly revealed her love for her collection. She also learnt that my friend had preserved a handwritten Quran at his place. She took his contact and invited us to her museum at Sopore, nearly 52 km from Srinagar.

Weeks later, she appeared at his doorstep with a hope to acquire the handwritten Quran. She was unable to strike a deal here but she never gave up on her other pursuits. Her failure here demonstrates how difficult the curation of items was.

The journey of forming a museum took a shape after Ateeqa’s retirement from government services in 1998. 2001 onwards when the museum was set up, it meant everything. It was initially set up in a small room in BEd college at Noorbagh in Sopore and later shifted in 2008 it to present building, all run and maintained by her expenses.

She would convince people to donate things to them and when the days weren’t all sunny, she would offer something in return. The goods would then be indexed and preserved.

Ateeqa’s looks resembled that of an ordinary Kashmiri woman but her hard-work and foresight went way beyond. I was never lucky enough to hear her story from her but even months after her death, the museum and the collection are reminiscent of her.

A corner in photo gallery contains collage pictures of famous women from Kashmir or who are in some ways associated with Kashmir. The wall, very diligently, compels one to think about the women from Kashmir who always remain unrecognized and unacknowledged and teaches us something that most other museums or schools don’t.

Her compassion for women’s rights was also revealed to me through the caretaker of the museum who said that Ateeqa had given her space to live close to the museum along with her children after she had been ousted by her in-laws. She recalls her days with Ateeqa Bano as a golden phase that she would never forget.

Ateeqa Bano chose an unorthodox way of life. After her father’s death, she decided to live forever with her mother and never marry. The decision to not marry is still a rebellious one in Kashmiri society and for her to make this choice decades back must have invited criticism from all. Apparently, she never budged and continued doing what she loved doing the most – her work.

From Sopore in the North to Shopian in the South to every district in Kashmir, Ateeqa travelled to collect things that represented Kashmir in many ways. She would travel for days and nights to obtain seemingly mundane goods and preserve them as a way to preserve the past for forthcoming generations.

The travels were not always easy. “At times, she would walk for miles altogether and ride a horse too when roads were not motorable,” says Maryam Masoodi, wife of her nephew. At times, she would be dissuaded by family, considering the effort it required. Maryam remembers how she would tiptoe inside the house in evenings when she got back home late from her work, fearing reproval from the family members.

On one occasion when Maryam accompanied her to her house in Kupwara, she went to rooftops to look for collectables. Maryam and others at the museum were fascinated and realized that no one else could have done it.

Today, at the museum, the caretakers refer to visitors as guests and regale them with stories of Ateeqa Bano. Before her death, she would spend days here. She had also built a blueprint to develop the museum on modern lines. However, because of her illness, she couldn’t accomplish this task. Her nephews are very keen to make her dream come true while she rests in her grave in the lawns of the museum.

source: http://www.feminisminindia.com / Feminism In India – FII / Home> History / by Arshie Qureshi / December 27th, 2018