Rizwan Shafi Wani/Srinagar

As Diwali approaches, Ghulam Qadir Kumar from the Kralpura area of Srinagar is busy making diyas, earthen lamps that a lighted after filling them with oil on religious and festive occasions.

Tough the presence of native Hindus has reduced in Kashmir, yet Ghulam Qadir Kumar continues to pound the mud, knead it and shape it into diyas unmindful of the change that Kashmir has undergone.

He has inherited this skill and has been making terracotta pots and others good to keep alive the art and the tradition for 50 years. Interestingly, terracotta pots that are still used in Kashmiri kitchens.

Kumar remembers the time when he would make thousands of clay pots before Diwali and these would be used to illuminate homes, temples and other spaces on festival Kashmiris called Deepmala as against Deepawali or Diwali in the rest of India.

Ghulam Qadir Kumar misses those days when all temples in Srinagar were decorated with handicrafts made by him.

Even today as the security forces and many professionals belonging to other parts of the country celebrate Diwali in Kashmir the advent of Chinese lamps have hit Kumar’s revenues.

“I'm 70 now," he said. When I started this work 50 years ago, the population in Srinagar was small and I used to go to the houses of the (Kashmiri) Pandits a week before Diwali and sell my diyas. They respected and welcomed me,” he says going down the memory lane.

Ghulam Qadir says that people of Pandit community invited him for Diwali celebration and yet he couldn’t go because of his busy sale days.” They kept sweets for me and whenever I visited them again they would give me my share,” he says.

"Everything changed in the 1990s when the situation became worse," he said.

Electronic fringes, lamps and lamps are readily available in modern markets. People there also decorate their houses with Chinese light, which has had an effect on potters.

Ghulam Qadir makes pottery and other good that can be used in daily life. He rues that the demand for pottery is very low. It takes a lot of effort to make pottery and yet it’s not even possible for me to recover my cost. This business is affected.

He fears that his skill may not survive beyond his generation. The younger generation is no longer interested in it as they are looking for other jobs.

Praising Ghulam Qadir Kumar's work, a local pundit said that Ghulam Qadir Kumar not only kept alive the tradition of making clay pots, but also set an example for those who weighed festivals on the scales of religion.

"Our country has a tradition of using clay on Diwali," he said. Our ancestors used clay pots. People are flocking to the market because of the abundance of Chinese light.

It should be noted that Diwali is an ancient festival which is celebrated with great pomp and ceremony in many countries of the world including Mauritius, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Malaysia, Singapore, Nepal and Fiji.

This festival is considered a symbol of victory of hope over despair. Preparations for the festival begin 9 days in advance and other rituals continue for another 5 days. The original festival is celebrated on the night of Amavas (new moon).