Kashmir wardrobes skip a season
Srinagar, Oct 6: Kashmir’s wardrobe rhythm has broken.
The gentle transition once marked by sleeveless sweaters and shrugs has vanished, hurting retailers and altering consumer habits.
With farmers harvesting in near-winter chill wearing long-sleeved woolen sweaters and pherans and shoppers skipping mid-season wear, Kashmir’s fashion and economy are adjusting to the new climate that skips a season.
By the first week of October, mornings in Srinagar were biting, evenings demanded woollens, and in upper regions from Pahalgam to Kupwara’s hinterlands, residents had already pulled out their Pherans.
“There used to be that in-between charm when you could wear light sweaters, half jackets, shrugs, or sweatshirts for a month or two,” said Muhammad Dawood, owner of MeRani Garments in Wazir Bagh. “Now it’s gone. We jump straight from cotton shirts and T-shirts to padded jackets. I didn’t even unpack my autumn stock this year; the chill has started too early.”
Dawood said the transition period between summer and winter has shrunk noticeably over the years.
“Autumn business has dropped sharply,” he said. “And people’s buying power is already low. Many now avoid spending on clothes they can wear for just a week or two.” Transitional fashion has disappeared, hitting retailers hard as the shrinking autumn window leaves light woollens unsold. Customers now adjust by buying heavier winter wear earlier each year.
In Srinagar, where fashion once followed the seasons, shop windows that used to show light sweaters and jackets now display heavy coats, boots, and even Pherans. “By late September, people used to ask for semi-warm wear, including sleeveless sweaters, light jackets, cardigans, trendy sweatshirts, and mufflers,” said Feroze Baba, manager at Dignity Sales at Lal Chowk. “Now they laugh when we show them light woollens. They say, ‘Should we take out our pherans or jackets now? Who wears these anymore?’”
The shop’s unsold racks tell the story better than any weather chart.
Autumn fashion, once a reliable seller, now doesn’t sell at all, a reminder of the milder weather that no longer comes to Kashmir. In south Kashmir’s Anantnag, the change is evident in both wardrobes and fields. Farmers harvesting paddy near Shangus, Kokernag, Qazigund, and Dooru see their breath turn to mist in the cold morning.
“It’s harvest season, but feels like mid-November,” said Kausar Ahmad Dalal, who runs a garment shop near Mattan Chowk. “Farmers are already wearing heavy woollens. There’s no time for autumn clothes. They go straight from summer cotton to pherans and jackets.”
Dalal said that autumn wear once defined his September-October business.
“We stocked alpine and spun fabrics for autumn. Now customers ask directly for woollens. By the time autumn stock arrives, winter starts knocking,” he said. Even middle-class families are rethinking seasonal spending. “Why waste money on clothes you can wear for 10 days?” said Munaza Mufti, a teacher from Anantnag. “Today it seemed like November. I packed away all my light sweaters and switched on the room heater.”
In north Kashmir’s Baramulla and surrounding districts, the cold arrives even faster. “Since October 1, nights have been freezing in Tangmarg and Gulmarg,” said Nasir Ahmad, owner of a ready-made garment shop in Baramulla. “Evening shoppers already come wrapped in jackets or Pherans. We are forced to sell winter wear early. This is now the new normal.”
For daily wagers in Kupwara and Rafiabad, the pheran serves as both a coat and a blanket. “We don’t have fancy jackets like city people,” said Abdul Rashid, a labourer from Trehgam. “One pheran and one kangri (fire pot) are enough for the entire winter. Autumn is not a season anymore. It’s just a few days of confusion.”
If autumn has disappeared into the cold, spring has dissolved into rain.
“In March, when almond blossoms are in full bloom, we get a couple of days of mild weather and then rain returns and the cold sets in,” said Dawood. “Our spring collection of cotton-blend sweatshirts, floral kurtis, and light shrugs all stay packed. People keep wearing jackets until May.”
Farmers confirm the same pattern.
“Morning may be warm, but by noon it rains and cold wind starts,” said Ghulam Nabi, a farmer from Pulwama. “We wear the same pheran or heavy sweaters from March to April, and no spring clothes anymore.” Experts say the shrinking transitional periods reflect broader climate changes.
“This has been the norm for over one and a half decades,” said a senior official at the Meteorological Centre in Srinagar. “Mild autumns and gentle springs are shrinking due to unstable temperature patterns.” Weather expert Sonam Lotus agreed. “Changing weather patterns are causing rapid temperature rises or falls, especially during autumn and spring. From October 8, days may warm slightly, but nights continue to grow colder,” he said.
The meteorological data supports the trend. Srinagar recorded 37.4 degrees Celsius in July, the hottest in 70 years.
In early October, temperatures plummeted to single digits.
June experienced sustained heatwaves, while August and September saw heavy rains. The gradual shift between summer and winter has collapsed into abrupt jumps. Retailers face direct economic consequences.
“We used to rotate stock five times a year - summer, monsoon, autumn, winter, and spring,” said a retailer from the Nowhatta area of Srinagar downtown.
“Now there are only two - hot and cold. Spring and autumn stock either stays unsold or goes on clearance sale,” he said.
The change has disrupted Kashmir’s clothing economy: fluctuating demand, shrinking margins, and fewer fashion cycles. “People now buy what lasts, not what’s seasonal,” the retailer said.
Across Kashmir, from city malls to village fields, residents now maintain just two wardrobes: one for hot weather and one for cold. The rest, like the fallen Chinar leaves, fade into memory. “Fashion used to follow the seasons,” said Dalal, folding unsold stock. “Now, weather follows no rule. Autumn and spring clothes are like forgotten poems. We still remember them, but there’s no time to wear them.”
