Amid simmering tensions between India and Pakistan, a 23-year-old travel blogger has released a video that shows the people living close to the Line of Control between the two countries who will be most affected by a war.
On February 26, India conducted air strikes on the Balakot area of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, aimed at destroying the militant outfit Jaish-e-Mohammad’s training camps. This came in the wake of a suicide attack on an Indian CRPF convoy by the group that resulted in at least 40 casualties.
The tensions between the two countries led many people to believe that war was imminent. Many television news channels ran jingoistic campaigns suggesting it was the only solution, while some ran a campaign under #SayNoToWar on social media. While the release of Indian Air Force pilot Abhinandan Varthaman, who was captured on February 27 by Pakistan, has resulted in a deescalation of the situation, both Indians and Pakistanis are wary of new developments and armed conflict.
In an attempt to discourage calls for war, Srishti Tehri’s short yet impactful video shows how young children in border villages have aspirations just like others in the country, and how the residents of these areas are trying to lead normal lives. People in Kashmir, Tehri says, are warm and hospitable and don’t want a war because they know they will be directly in the line of fire.
Tehri has earlier shot and released videos on how it’s safe for women to travel solo in Jammu and Kashmir.
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