Habba Khatoon, "The Nightingale of Kashmir," is a well-known poetess. She is the first romantic poetess of Kashmir. She is often credited for the introduction of "lol" and "vatsun" in Kashmiri poetry.
She
was born in 1551 in Chadhaar. It is a small village in the tehsil of Pampore.
She belonged to a poor family. Her father's name was Abdi Rather. He was a farmer.
And her mother, Janam, was
a housewife. Habba Khatoon’s birth name was "Zoon." In Kashmiri, it means
"moon".
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| The painting of a Kashmiri woman | Image Source - Pinterest |
In
her childhood, Habba Khatoon received her education in Arabic and Persian. They
were the most dominant languages in Kashmir till almost the 18th century.
She has also been very famous for her beauty. It is said that people from far
away used to come to see her glimpse.
She
got married at a very young age. Her husband, Aziz Lone, was younger than her. He was a
carpenter. He was an illiterate and ill-mannered person. Her married life
experience was not good. His husband used to be very harsh towards her. He
often used to beat her. She tried everything to prove her loyalty and love
towards her husband. But nothing helped her change him.
Habba
Khatoon was gifted with an amazing voice and writing skills. This thing caught
the eyes of her in-laws. They always used to taunt her for ruining their
family's respect. Finally, one day she was asked to leave for her parents home
by her in-laws. After moving back to Habba Khatoon, she kept herself busy in
households.
When
Habba Khatoon was born, Kashmir was under the rule of Zain-ul-Abideen. He was
the last ruler of the Shahmiri Dynasty, who gave up his throne in 1554. The
next dynasty to rule over Kashmir was the Chak Dynasty. He was established by
Ali Shah Chak. Their last ruler was Yousuf Shah Chak.
He
was also a scholar and a poet. His work is in Kashmiri, Persian, and also in
Sanskrit. It is said that one day Yousuf Shah Chak was passing near the saffron
fields of Pampore. There he had a glimpse of Habba Khatoon. Her adorable beauty
and melodious voice attracted him. He got her talaq from her husband, Aziz
Lone, for 5000 dirhams. And they both later got married.
Yousuf
Shah Chak ascended the throne in 1587 A.D. He later announced Habba Khatoon as
her queen. She enjoyed the status for almost 14 years. At that time, Yousuf
Shah Chak was 23 years old. And Habba Khatoon was 29 years old. They spent most
of their time in Gulmarg and Sonamarg. They also used to visit lakes, flower
gardens, and other beautiful spots in the valley.
However,
these beautiful days didn’t last for long. In the end of 1580, Mughal Emperor
Akbar started ruling over Kashmir. He had his eyes on Kashmir for a very long
time. He even once attacked but was badly defeated by the Chak army.
Emperor
Akbar later invited Yousuf Shah Chak to Delhi as a guest. But there he detained
him and locked him in jail in Biswak, Bihar. He never returned to Kashmir and
later died in prison. This incident affected Habba Khatoon badly. After this,
she felt so lonely. Her sufferings were later seen in her songs.
Habba
Khatoon wrote all her poems in the Kashmiri language. At that time, almost all
the literature was compiled in Persian. But she was not the first poetess to
start writing in Kashmiri. The poetry in Kashmiri started 200 years ago with Lal Ded and Sheikh Noor-ud-Din Wali(R.A.).
However,
her "lol" songs
gave it new energy. Even in her time, her songs reached their zenith. People
still listen to and enjoy the lyrics of her songs. Habba Khatoon died in 1604
A.D. She is buried in Athvajan, Srinagar. In the 20th century,
another famous poet, Mehjoor, was
also buried beside her. Habba Khatoon will always be in our hearts. She has
made a huge contribution to the Kashimiri language. Her tremendous work will
always keep her alive.