The mesmerising autumn season is at its peak in Kashmir, and the Mughal Gardens have yet again become a major tourist attraction with tourists, influencers, and filmmakers thronging the place.
Immediately before the first snowflake of the season, and the summer sun begins to weaken, there comes a magical time across Kashmir when the locals go out to capture themoments. This is the time when one finds a colourful combination and the landscapes look amazing. The air is crisp and cool, the leaves are beginning to fall, and theforests are turning into a beautiful fiery orange. Every autumn, Kashmir transforms into a fairyland. The mountains light up in gorgeous hues of orange and gold and theweather is just perfect!
“I’m amazed to see this natural beauty. I have been travelling around the world and never seen such a beautiful place which has so much soothing impact on your personality,” comedian and actor-producer, Krushna Abhishek told Greater Kashmir.
Abhishek, who recently shot OMG! Yeh Mera India Season 9 in Kashmir says he was thrilled to know that the shooting was happening in picturesque Kashmir.
“It is my first visit to Kashmir. When I landed in Kashmir, I was overwhelmed. How can I not visit this place? I don’t understand why we are even choosing Switzerland or European countries for shooting any films. Kashmir offers a wide array of opportunities for filmmakers,” he says. “This heavenly landscape endowed with mountains and hills, gardens and orchards, lakes and rivers, Chinars and flowers make the place so beautiful that you want to stay here forever. This is my first trip to Srinagar and has been nothing but spectacular. This indeed is a heaven on earth! I can’t wait to get all the exciting stories to you.”
Another tourist from Kolkata, Aparajita Ghosh, says that she has been dreaming of visiting Kashmir.
“I want to visit Kashmir in all seasons. I want to see this place draped in snow and also in its peak autumn season,” a jubilant Ghosh says. “We enjoyed a lot here at the Mughal Garden and also visited some other places including Naseem Bagh and Dal Lake. I believe we have come at theright time to enjoy and get back some memorable events of life. It is such a detoxing affair after coming here.”
The autumn season also known as ‘Harud’ in the local language denotes the foggy season with different hues in theair. During this season the maple leaves of majestic Chinar trees turn gold brown from the green which always attracts nature lovers.
A large number of tourists from across South Asian countries have thronged to the gardens to witness its beauty and picturesque atmosphere created by the autumn leaves of ‘Chinar trees’. Tourists from different ethnicities are visiting the Mughal Gardens Nishat, Shalimar, Cheshmashahi, Pari Mahal, and Harwan to observe the scenic beauty. Thegolden hues of the leaves of Chinar trees at Nishat, Shalimar, and other Mughal gardens have enhanced thebeauty of these gardens with a sight to cherish.
EVERY SEASON ENTHRALLING
Filmmaker and co-director of Defiance Films, Rizza Ali says that he was finding various seasons of Kashmir enthralling.
“There is certainly something that one can do creatively in every season here,” Ali says.
“In this kind of natural setting with the autumn leaves decorating the streets, lanes, and by-lanes, I generally take out my cycle and a set of cameras to get into nature and capture the moments,” he says.
PHOTOGRAPHERS’ PARADISE
Jammu and Kashmir which is known by the sobriquet ‘Theheaven on the earth’ is resplendent with white beauty in winter. Photographers often fall in love with the Valley of Kashmir. Kashmir has four seasons, and in every season, professionals explore their creative pursuits.
“Autumn is a very beautiful season. You have an amazingcolour tone around the subjects,” noted fine art photographer and former faculty at Film and Television Institute of India, Pune, Bharat Kanare told Greater Kashmir.
Tourists, visitors, influencers, and filmmakers are thronging Kashmir with the onset of autumn and with winter all set to follow soon.
The beautiful atmosphere of the region is enhanced by thecoolness in the air, mild sunshine throughout the day, cold mornings and evenings, and burning poplar trees all around during this period.
Mughal Gardens are the first choice of tourists during this season as these gardens are filled with Chinar trees.
Kashmir is known and recognised all over the world because of its changing seasons, be it winter or summer, spring or autumn. The weather in every season here has a different feel and visual appeal.
However, walking on the fallen Chinar leaves in the autumnseason is a different experience for tourists.
According to stakeholders and the Kashmir Tourism Department, the current autumn season will prove to be a golden season for the tourism industry here.
“We have already witnessed a good number of tourists coming to Kashmir,” says a senior official at theDepartment of Tourism, Kashmir.
“The way we are getting tourists here in the autumn season so far, we are expecting the same amount of tourist rush for the winter season too,” he says.
However, the tourism stakeholders urge the government not to limit the tourists to Mughal Gardens. “We want more and more tourists to explore Srinagar’s downtown areas,” thePresident of the Downtown Coordination Committee says.
He said that the government has taken a slew of measures so that the industry is revived in Jammu and Kashmir.
“Due to policy interventions in J&K, after the pandemic, many sections of society connected with the tourist trade were provided financial support by the authorities,” he said.
Talking to Greater Kashmir, the President of the Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), Shiekh Ashiq said, “We ought to have a more robust mechanism to rope in social media influencers, bloggers, and vloggers and target a record number of tourists. If we can tap thepotential of corporate clients, it will be a huge boost to tourism here.”