Young woman sets out on bicycle journey to Kashmir

Parents say expedition along with two men symbolises changing times of society, community

July 28, 2021 10:24 pm | Updated July 29, 2021 08:48 am IST - MALAPPURAM

Areekode Station House Officer Laijumon C.V. flagging off Sahla’s bicycle journey to Kashmir on Sunday.

Areekode Station House Officer Laijumon C.V. flagging off Sahla’s bicycle journey to Kashmir on Sunday.

A young woman from Thachanna near Areekode in the district has set out on a bicycle journey to Kashmir. Giving company to her are two friends of hers with good cycling experience from Areekode.

It was a long-cherished desire for 21-year-old Sahla, daughter of Sakeer Hussain and Hafsath, to traverse the country on a bicycle and enjoy the beauty of the countryside. A student of journalism, Sahla

bought a bicycle with the money she saved during her studies and ventured out on the adventurous trip along with Mohammed Shamil and Mashhoor Shan.

Laijumon C.V., Inspector of Areekode police station, flagged off the journey in front of the police station on Sunday. Sahla was excited about the trip. “It’s been a dream for me to go up to Kashmir on a bicycle. Now that we are starting our journey, my excitement has reached its pinnacle,” she said.

Sahla’s parents said her bicycle journey along with two men could be symbolized as the changing times of the society and the community.

According to Sahla, gone are the days when girls were asked not to venture out of their homes after sunset. “My parents are the best encouragement for me,” she said.

According to Sahla’s father, Sakeer, boys and girls should be given the freedom they seek for the fulfilment of their dreams. “Their confidence and courage will be of little use if we restrain them from

flourishing,” he said.

Sahla had criss-crossed the State on bicycle several times in recent years. A student of Indira Gandhi National Tribal University, Amarkantak, Madhya Pradesh, Sahla is yet to see the campus of her alma

mater. “COVID-19 made everything online. I wish to pay a visit to my campus during the journey if possible,” she said.

The journey is expected to take three months. Sahla and friends have been excited about the places they would be passing through before reaching the dream destination of Kashmir valley.

Shamil, secretary of a cycling collective named Eranad Pedallers, had reached Kashmir on bicycle in 2018. He said he was craving for yet another journey to Kashmir.

Mashhoor Shan, an ITI teacher, too had covered several States on bicycle.

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