`King Salman to Che Guevara’: Meet Kashmir’s lone stone painter who is recognized abroad but not at home

SRINAGAR: When all his schoolmates were preparing for competitive exams, Manzoor Ahmad Bhat was climbing mountains looking for different colored stones.

From Sonamarg to Ladakh, Manzoor wandered for 21 years to collect stones for paintings.

Come 2023, Manzoor has become the only Kashmiri stone painter who has been invited to London and Dubai to showcase his unique art.

From Saudi King Salman to ancient ship, Manzoor has painted it all. He neither uses brush nor canvas. Instead, he uses crushed stones with adhesive to paint on a plyboard.

“It is 21 years of struggle, pain, and tribulation. I could not go beyond class 10 because I wanted to do something different. I was good at drawings in my class. So my job was to do the drawing work of all my classmates. I loved it. When I completed my matric I decided to pursue my passion. Since I did not want to be a run-of-mill painter, I chose to do something different,” Manzoor told The Kashmir Monitor.

Manzoor embarked on a journey that was full of hurdles, roadblocks, and other difficulties. “I did not go with the wind. Instead, I went against the tide. I climbed different mountains and collected different colored stones. I crushed them and filtered them to get sand-like material. Then I arrange it on a ply board with adhesives. It is different from oil or water painting. It has a different feel,” he said.

Such is the arduous journey of collecting stones that it takes him days to collect one or two stones. ”There are three types of stones. One is Aare Kaen (stream stone). They are hard and can’t be used. Then there is the kakaw stone. That stone too can’t be used because it is too brittle. Then there is another stone which I crush and create granules. These granules are used for paintings. Most importantly, a mountain will have a single color stone. For another color, I shall have to look for another mountain,” said Manzoor.

Hailing from Ganderbal, Manzoor was 14 when he started stone painting. Despite giving 21 years to this art, it has not been registered. “I have been invited to London and Dubai for an exhibition. But I could not go. There is a clause that an artist should be registered. In 2010, I applied for registration. Authorities even tested my paintings but refused to give registration. Now I have showcased my art again and I have been assured that I will get the registration,” he said.

For all these years, he has paid from his pocket to pursue his passion. “My father was a government employee, so I used to ask him for money to pursue my passion. Since my father also retired and I have a family of my own, I started working for a marketing company to eke out my living,” said Manzoor.