Pakistan band enthrals war-weary Indian Kashmiris

SRINAGAR - Thousands of violence-weary Kashmiris in the Indian-administered region danced and cheered during a rare concert by a top Pakistani rock band on Sunday, the biggest musical event here in decades.
The five-member Sufi band ‘Junoon,’ which claims a huge South Asian fan base, enthralled concert-goers on the banks of Dal Lake, where Indian musician Ravi Shankar is rumoured to have taught Beatle George Harrison how to play the sitar in the 1960s.
Young women danced and clapped as the band's lead singer Salman Ahmed sang Sufi songs in the Urdu language.
The venue in Kashmir's summer capital Srinagar was closely guarded by Indian security forces to thwart any attacks by Islamic militants, who had opposed the event.
Ahmed recalled how he had tried to visit Indian Kashmir many times in the past decade, only to be told ‘next time’ by sponsors.
‘This is the 10-year-long tryst with destiny that today Junoon is with you,’ he said during the show as he stood on a specially-designed stage.
The performance was a rare cultural programme in Indian Kashmir, where such shows have been shelved since since the outbreak of an Islamic insurgency in 1989.
The revolt hit the entertainment industry in Kashmir, with the rebels targeting cinemas, liquor shops, video parlours and other sites deemed threatening to Islamic culture.
Syed Ali Geelani, who heads the hardline faction of Indian Kashmir's main separatist alliance, last week called for a boycott of the show since ‘Kashmir was a disputed area.’
Violence in Kashmir has claimed more than 43,000 lives in the past two decades. But it has fallen since peace talks were launched in 2004 between rivals India and Pakistan, who administer the region in part but claim it in full.
A few Pakistani singers and musicians visited Kashmir last year, but Sunday's event was the first one on a large scale.
‘It is great to see music healing wounds in Kashmir and propagating friendship between India and Pakistan,’ said Mehnaz Ali, a 21-year-old female student.
Prasad Rao, whose non-governmental South Asia Foundation (SAF) organised the event, said the concert was aimed at encouraging regional co-operation and peace.
Chandrika Kumaratunga, a former president of Sri Lanka who heads her country's SAF chapter, added: ‘This is the best way to promote peace.’