Sameer Hamdani's Book Explores Srinagar's Lost Cosmopolitan Identity

Sameer Hamdani wrote a book about Srinagar, a city in Kashmir.

He talks about how Srinagar is very old and has been shaped by many different cultures over thousands of years.

The city has seen Buddhist, Hindu, Islamic, Persian, Mughal, Dogra, Sikh, and British influences.

Hamdani explains that people often think of Srinagar as a place of conflict, but it has a much richer history.

He describes how the city has changed over time, including the loss of its cosmopolitan identity after 1990.

The book is divided into two parts: one about the city's medieval history and the other about daily life in Kashmir.

Hamdani also talks about how fire has destroyed much of the city's heritage and how the city has seen both beauty and pain.

He mentions that the book is the first part of a two-volume work and hopes to explore more in the second part.