The Kashmir valley has been characterized for centuries by a distinctive landscape of lakes and rivers, traditionally inhabited by communities called the Hanjis. The practice of construction of their floating dwellings has been integral to the culture of this region, shaping and sustaining the ecological landscape that has come to depend upon it. Beginning from the 19th century, this craft of construction of floating dwellings called the ‘Doonga’, was simultaneously employed for tourism leading to the now popular misconception that the craft was primarily developed for British patrons. Eventually, burgeoning tourism led to an unregulated increase in the number of houseboats, which were singly condemned for ecological degradation of the valley’s waterscape. Legal restrictions forbidding new houseboat construction were enforced with the belief that it will protect the water bodies. These have resulted not only in disempowerment of the traditional communities dependent on the practice and loss of their craft of boat construction, but also threatened the ecological balance of the landscape.
Our project aims to locate and document the resonant actors and networks to be conserved in order to conserve this heritage and the co-dependent ecology of the region. Documentation of traditional houseboats and craft techniques will serve as a lens to record the oral histories of remaining master craftsmen and of Hanji community members to record their knowledge, community practices and experiences.
The drawing documentation of the structures and the process of creating them would serve as the start point of our investigations of the skilled practitioner participating in a world of materials. As Ingold (2007) argues, different from the engineer’s reading of the material, the practitioner’s reading comes from a lifetime of sensory perception and practical engagement. The technical documentation of the materials and production process would encapsulate and conserve the narratives of communities that have affected and been affected by the practice.
Principal Investigator:
Sayali Milind Athale
Collaborators:
Gloren Anto and Sanskar Bapat
Location of Research:
Kashmir Valley, India
Host Institution:
Aseem Foundation, India
Top Banner Image: A houseboat floating on Dal Lake. Photo credit: Sayali Athale.