From Traditional to Trendy: South Kashmir woman revamps Kashmiri Samovar

Qazigund, Mar 30: Since her childhood, Shazia (32) has had an unusual penchant for machines. All white goods at her home would captivate her, igniting her desire to enhance them with additional features.

A resident of sleepy Check Badwani village, 2 kms from south Kashmir's Qazigund town, Shazia took her father aback when she first time suggested the modifications in a lock attached to their sturdy iron door.

"Then I was barely 10 years old," said Shazia.

Her itch for innovation spurred her to innovate and transform a range of things. However, her endeavour to innovate the traditional Kashmiri samovar, an integral part of Kashmiri culture resulted in an ingenious blend of tradition and modernity.

"As preparing tea in the traditional samovar using charcoal is a time-consuming process, I toyed with the idea of improvising it to save time," said Shazia.

She shared the idea with her father who helped her arrange the equipment required in the process.

"We planted a curved gas burner inside the vertical fire tube of the traditional samovar and connected it to a mini LPG gas cylinder," she said.

According to Shazia, they were able to create a prototype after facing a host of difficulties.

"A ready-made burner was not available in the market. So, we had to create one ourselves," she said.

After persistent efforts, Shazia and her father were able to develop a burner.

"We failed over a dozen times before we developed one. For us, it was no mean feat," she said.

However, after some time, she seriously thought about transforming it again. The escalating LPG prices prompted her to explore alternative fuel options.

"And finally, I came up with an electric-powered Samovar," she said.

Shazia claims that the samovar can prepare at least 25 cups of tea barley in 5 minutes and keep it boiling for around 20 minutes once the electric supply is stopped, thus conserving energy.

A timer is installed on the samovar with a cut-out feature for safety and convenience.

"It could be taken to farms like a traditional samovar", said Shazia, who holds a patent for it.

Apart from that, Shazia developed many household goods including a multi-purpose oven.

Her innovations were recognised both at the regional and national level. The National Innovation Foundation( NIF), J&K, the Institute of Technology, University of Kashmir offered comprehensive support both financial and technical. She also received a national-level award at a festival organised by the National Innovation Foundation( NIF) at Rashtrapati Bhavan New Delhi.