Life, Laugh, Like: The Kashmiri Stand-Ups In Viral Acts

Bobe darae jungle tai khoech haptas, net aao wapas tai net aao wapas
Shuer aasan zenai tai luekh taravan drops, net aao wapas tai net aao wapas

[Mother went to the jungle and was terrorised by a bear, the internet has returned, the internet has returned
Even before children are born, they are being given (vaccine) drops, the internet has returned, the internet has returned]

In 2020, when 13-year-old Aatif Ahmad Wani uploaded his poem on YouTube, he had very little idea that his humorous take on restoration of the internet after 10 months would resonate so much with the people of Kashmir. Those were turbulent times in the Valley after Jammu and Kashmir was stripped of its special status and a communication blackout clamped to prevent potential unrest. as far as But unlike the deluge of protest poetry that had swamped the Valley during the time, Wani’s was a more simplistic and rustic  view of life. And it was effective. The video of the teenager sitting in his room and reciting his own poetry has over four lakh views on YouTube and has been shared and ‘liked’ hundreds of times on Facebook.

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For Kashmiris—caught for decades in the cyclical militant violence and counter-strike by security forces—it is easy to fall into the rabbit hole of doom and gloom. For many, however, the curveballs life throws at them become the source of their humour—sometimes self-deprecating, sometimes sarcastic, and sometimes tinged with poignancy. This has resulted in a unique Kashmiri version of stand-up comedy, delivered by people from rural backgrounds. Across the vast social media landscape—including YouTube and Facebook—Kashmiri content creators are sharing random jokes and witty one-liners, most of them in video format, to subtly convey the challenges faced by people every day in the conflict-hit region. And art is definitely imitating life in some of the most viral videos to have emerged from Kashmir.

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In January this year, when Kar Shoab, 20, visited a reputed bank in Handwara—a small town about 70 km from capital Srinagar—he was told to come the next day as the branch had run out of cash. He also found that the “lunch hours” had been extended by quite some time and the guard at the entrance was not allowing any customer in. When he visited the bank ATM nearby, he was told it had been “looted”. The bitter experience resulted in a spoof which Kar produced with his partner Aatif Wani, both of whom run a YouTube channel named Kar Shoaeb.

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Aatif played multiple roles in the video—that of a bank manager, a clerk, a security guard and a customer—to showcase how people face so many difficulties in dealing with bank staff. The video went viral—it had garnered half-a-million views and counting— as it reflected an everyday experience for most of the people. However, the video did not go down well with the bank, which asked Kar and Aatif to pull down the video and apologise. But they refused to relent and the video continues to leave people in splits. Their YouTube channel has 2.7 lakh subscribers and some of its videos have views in the millions.

Kar and Aatif—who are extended famil members —teamed up in 2017 but their most famous work came in March 2020, when the government restored communication after a long internet and 3G blockade. They produced a video titled Internet Zinda Hai, playing on the title of a hit Bollywood movie Tiger Zinda Hain starring Salman Khan. What started as an experiment for Kar and Aatif is now a revenue-earning venture. However, it is only Aatif who acts in the videos. Kar, who hasn’t revealed his face to the public so far, says he started his channel with just one goal. “In a place like Kashmir, we sell fun. We give some moments to people to laugh and are proud of it,” he tells Outlook.

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Speaking about their revenue, Kar says it varies depending on various factors. “What we earn varies from month to month. For example, if we earn Rs 40,000 in a month in winters, in summers we earn half of it. Views drop in the summer. Views plunge to minus when the internet is shut,” Kar says. What Kashmir’s content creators fear most is the long shadow of internet shutdowns hanging over the Valley. The government defends the shutdown as a necessary evil to maintain law and order. It is also precisely the reason why these Kashmiris avoid videos which could be construed as having political or ideological leanings. And plain humour allows them the freedom to sidestep any reaction from the authorities.

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“We never make any political videos. We never make any video that goes against any religion,” says Yawar Ahmad Wani, 20, one of the most prominent YouTube content creators in Kashmir valley who sings and cracks jokes on his channel named Yawar Wani. Armed with Go-Pro cameras and other equipment needed for his craft, Wani travels far to find the perfect backdrop for his videos. A student of literature, Wani is from Mujgund along the Srinagar-Bandipora road. Yawar stepped into the world of content creation in November 2016 with his own group named Kashmiri Kalkhrab—Kashmiri Hotheads—but their first brush with stardom came a year later.

Yawar and his friends were sitting at a shopfront, observing customers asking for different items from the shopkeeper. His replies caught their attention and they made a video of him speaking in different voices. The video received accolades from viewers. “When we started Kalkhrab, people wanted to hear something new. They have had enough sad content all around. They wanted something they could laugh at. And we provided that,” Yawar says. His YouTube Channel, Yawar Wani, now has 1.27 lakh subscribers and more than 1.6 million views. However, Yawar says his goal is to get more subscribers from outside Kashmir. “If the internet is shut for a longer period, then we can go out and make our videos. It shouldn’t impact our reach.”  

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Amid the China-India standoff in the Ladakh region last year, Yawar travelled to the picture-postcard Pangong Lake in Ladakh to shoot a video song; it was not so much about the conflict but about the lament of a young man whose lover has forgotten her promises. His song has over a million views till date. But his biggest hits are his ‘family dramas’ in which he plays different characters. “Initially my family was shocked to see me acting as a daughter-in-law and a wife in one of our videos. But gradually they got used to it and they now appreciate what I do,” Yawar says, chuckling. 

Waris Wani, 28, an engineering graduate of the Tral area of South Kashmir, also produces skits and plays the characters of father, mother, daughter and daughter-in-law. Waris’s videos have over a million views on Facebook and he is seen as one of the top comedian-actors and directors in Jammu and Kashmir. Waris has 1.3 million Facebook followers of his Funny Kashmir page and nearly one lakh subscribers on You­Tube. Some of his videos have lakhs of views on his YouTube channel of the same name. Waris says people ask him to raise drug addiction, suicides, break-ups, sufferings of daughters-in-law and anxieties of mother­s-in-law, girl and child education. His videos on suicides have over a million views on Facebook.

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“I have been sort of an actor since childhood. I would do skits in school and even in college in Kurukshetra where I have studied B.Tech. I have a habit of expressing myself without ann­oying a listener and funny things come naturally to me,” Waris says, adding that he earns “decent money” out of his videos which enables him to pay his actors. “People are suffering from anxiety. They are very sad. This place reeks of sadness and we are providing them humour,” adds Waris who writes his own scripts.

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His series titled Panun Dostna—our friendship—on his YouTube channel is a prime example of his mixing humour to raise social issues. One of the episodes shows him visiting his friend and finding him crying. Thinking that the friend’s father has died, Waris too starts wailing, before saying, “I had told him to give up cigarettes!” When the friend says that his father is fine but he has suffered a break-up, Waris says in a deadpan expression, “Even the internet is not cut in Tral as fast as you are facing your break-ups.”

Humour, after all, is the best medicine. More so for Kashmir seeking a balm for its wary soul and body.

(This appeared in the print edition as "Life...or Something Like It")

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