Srinagar: Help Foundation, a non-governmental organisation, has established a private museum Bait-ul-Meeras with an aim to make the younger generation aware of Kashmir's rich cultural legacy and tradition. Established in a heritage building in the Aali Kadal area of downtown, Srinagar, this museum has rare centuries-old artefacts of Kashmir. They reflect the history, culture and tradition of Kashmiris. In this one-of-its-kind gallery, ancient jewellery, traditional clothing, pottery, art, handicrafts and old musical instruments are displayed, which became a thing of the past.
Hakeem Javed, the project coordinator of Help Foundation, says that the aim of Bait-ul-Meeras is to provide knowledge about the cultural heritage of Kashmir to the young generation so that they can get acquainted with the glorious past, along with the modern demands of the present. This museum was established by Help Foundation in August 2021. However, it was officially inaugurated in March 2022. Bait-ul-Meeras Heritage Palace is the second largest private museum in Kashmir after Sopore, which has 150 to 200-year-old artefacts.
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There are also most of the artefacts that were common in Kashmir till the end of the 20th century. Here you can find 200-year-old Kashmiri Kanz, water barrel, Kashmiri Dan, different kinds of ornaments, mats made of grass and slippers i.e; Kashmiri Pataj and Pulhour (traditional straw footwear of Kashmir), apart from the special clothes used in marriages in that era, there are also the burqas of elders and young women, which were commonly used in the olden days.
Not only has the Help Foundation had to put in a lot of effort to collect such old articles, but it has taken two years from the selection of the site to the actual opening of the museum. The owner of the building, Farooq Ahmed, says that the importance of this historical building has increased with the establishment of Bait-ul-Meeras here. Because it is not only difficult but impossible to find such heritage buildings in Kashmir now. Bait-ul-Meeras is gradually becoming popular not only among local people but also non-local tourists.
