Progressive Literary Movement in Kashmir: It’s formative Years, and its demise

Freedom from the British in 1947 brought with it political turmoil in Kashmir in the form of tribal raids in October of 1947. But the raids were made unsuccessful with help from India. Subsequently, a popular government under the leadership of Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah was installed in Jammu and Kashmir thus ending the 101 years rule of Jammu Dogras over the Kashmir valley. As the National Conference attained power in Indian part of Kashmir, there was a sense of hope and patriotic fervour growing in the masses. This precipitated a gamut of positive developments in Kashmir some of which were the land reforms of 1950s and the Progressive literary developments. The nationalist poetry of Mahjoor and Azad from 1930s onwards, influenced other writers like Nadim, Arif, Khayal and Rahi among others to mark the beginning of Progressive Movement. These poets and writers were influenced by Marxist thought, the Russian and Chinese Revolutions and the Indian Nationalism. It was only in the aftermath of Sheikh’s imprisonment in 1953 that the nationalist and socialist fervour amidst the progressive writers began to dampen and they gradually moved off to romantic and other poetic genres.