Nazir Ganaie
SRINAGAR, Sept 3: “Located half-way down Al Mergab Street (in Qatar) sits an unassuming shop. Yet opening the door is akin to opening a Pandora’s Box of delights; Riyaz Bhat, alias the ‘Rug Man’ takes you happily on a virtual journey to the tribal heart of Afghanistan.”
This is how a foreign tourist described in his blog a shop selling carpets and rugs; but the owner is certainly not an Afghan, but from the scenic Himalayan valley of Kashmir.
Upstairs in ‘Kashmir Handicrafts Emporium’, Bhat’s shop in Qatar, is an Aladdin’s cave housing rare rugs, he says. This room, otherwise plain and unembellished, dazzles with intricately and colourfully designed carpets. Each rug is wreathed in history and tells a story of a nomadic family; these are more than just rugs, they are pieces of art having passed on to generations across ages.
The majority of these nomadic rugs are sourced from Afghanistan. “It’s beautiful, lush green with forests, lakes and streams,” says Bhat. “Most tribes from neighbouring areas try to go to Afghanistan and settle there. There are now a variety of tribes there, rather than just native Afghan tribes.”
Bhat learnt the basics of rugs and carpet-weaving from his family and relatives, a few of whom, he says, were born geniuses. He read a vast amount of literature on how a workshop rug is different from a family or tribal rug.
“A family rug, or tribal rug, is one made by one person for his or her own use. So when they make this rug, they also use it, and any genuine tribal rug therefore will never be a new one. They make it and use it in their tent, after which they make a new one and sell the old one,” he says.
Having established his business in Qatar, Bhat claims that he has had an opportunity of displaying the rugs before the US Presidential team in 2003.
“I was invited to the US Embassy to display the tribal rugs and almost all the pentagon people saw my rugs and I made a good sale. Colin Powel and some other officials appreciated my work too,” he says.
‘The Rug-man and Afghans’
When Bhat opened his shop there in the year 2000, he was more than apprehensive of its future. However, soon Bhat was doing handsome business and hence the name ‘Rug Man’ – a trademark.
However, Bhat’s story has been quite unusual from the rest of the Kashmir traders selling indigenous art worldwide. His is filled with passion; starting from his homeland right up to the conflict torn Afghanistan before resting gloriously in the deserts of Arabia.
But why? Back in 1987, a 23-year-old college student Bhat was already thinking dangerous. Those were the days when Kashmir had no inkling of a ‘storm’ that would kill tens of thousands amid raging bullets and bombs. Perhaps a succession of booming business seasons and unprecedented tourist arrivals had fired his entrepreneurial spirit, but why, of all places, did he want to deploy it in war-torn Afghanistan?
“The nomadic life in Afghanistan. I wanted to see these nomads and live with them; they influenced my life and shaped my zeal for this business,” Bhat says.
“Are you crazy?” he remembers his father exclaiming. “First kill me and then leave.”
With family history embedded deeply in carpet-weaving, Bhat had developed a fascination for the fabled rugs of the mysterious, rugged land and the tribal life producing them. He was too obsessed with the desire to lay his hands on rare and exquisite specimens to think of anything else.
“So one evening in June 1987 while I was having dinner with my parents, I tried to overcome their apprehension. I knew what I was going to ask them would immediately be refused as it was impossible for them to allow me to travel to Afghanistan, where a fierce war was on,” he says.
“I wanted to come in contact with the tribes who, though not formally educated, made the most incredible rugs. I wanted to learn their craft. Though my security was a matter of grave concern, I was too obsessed to think about it.”
It seems luck was in Bhat’s favor as he had an uncle living in Pakistan and dealing in rugs. He convinced his parents that he be allowed to travel to Pakistan, and with his help then to Afghanistan.”
The decision was a ‘dream come true’.
‘Dangerous journey’
Each year Bhat makes his journey to Afghanistan to purchase nomadic rugs. They traverse the most dangerous roads, at the Afghanistan and Pakistan border.
“My cousin and I have five gunmen with us. These gunmen are legal and licensed bodyguards who travel with us in two jeeps,” he says. “Everyone knows we have weapons and they do not come near us. I have been doing this for the last 23 years.”
It’s a dangerous expedition to make, Bhat admits. But the determination for not deserting the tribes who rely on him for their livelihood keeps him going.
“I am very happy and deep inside I feel I am supporting a good cause, helping these people and buying their rugs and selling them here. I am risking my life going there, but I still want to go and meet these wonderful people, it’s amazing. For all these years these people have suffered, living difficult lives. But that hasn’t killed their love for art.”
Bhat’s absolute enthusiasm is infectious as he speaks animatedly about purchasing not just a handmade tribal rug but also a family heirloom. “They are like magnificent paintings. The magic of tribal rugs is that they never look used or worn. They will remain with you forever, he says.
“When I sell any rug, I tell my customers to treat them delicately. I call them their guardians.”
(The author is correspondent, Kashmir Observer)
