SRINAGAR: In the wake of a deadly terror attack that shattered the serenity of Pahalgam, a popular tourist destination in south Kashmir, stories of courage and humanity have begun to emerge. Among them is the account of BJP youth wing worker Arvind S Agrawal, who survived the attack along with his wife and four-year-old daughter — thanks, he says, to the bravery of a local guide, Nazakat Ahmed Shah.
The attack, which took place on Tuesday, claimed 26 lives — 25 tourists and one local — and left several injured. As bullets tore through the landscape near the zipline area, Shah’s quick thinking reportedly helped save not just Agrawal’s family, but other tourists as well.
“Everything was peaceful and I was clicking photos,” Agrawal, a resident of Chirimiri in Chhattisgarh, told The Indian Express. “My four-year-old daughter and wife were a bit far from me when the firing suddenly began. My guide, Nazakat, was with them and another couple and their child.”
According to Agrawal, the 28-year-old Shah immediately asked everyone to lie down, shielding the children — Agrawal’s daughter and his friend’s son — with his own body. Once the shooting paused momentarily, Shah guided them to a safer area through a gap in the fencing and returned to search for Agrawal’s wife, who had run in another direction during the chaos.
“I do not know what would have happened had Nazakat not been there,” Agrawal said. “He not only brought my wife back from nearly 1.5 kilometres away but also drove us all to Srinagar. My wife’s clothes had been torn while escaping, and locals gave her something to wear.”
Shah’s courageous actions have since gone viral on social media, after Agrawal posted a photo with him on Instagram. “You saved us by risking your life. We will never be able to repay the favour of Nazakat Bhai,” Agrawal wrote.
Speaking to the media, Shah downplayed his heroism, but emphasised the emotional toll the attack has taken on the local community. His own cousin, Syed Adil Hussain Shah, a 30-year-old horseman who ferried tourists, was among those killed. Adil was reportedly shot dead while trying to stop the militants.
“I got a call later and was told that my brother Adil had died in the attack,” Shah told The Indian Express. “Tourism is our bread and butter. We are unemployed without it, and our children’s education depends on it. This attack is not just on tourists, it’s an attack on our hearts.”
The incident has sparked widespread condemnation and grief across the Valley. Shopkeepers and locals in Pahalgam reportedly shut their businesses in protest and mourning.
While security forces have launched a manhunt for the perpetrators, voices from Kashmir like Shah’s offer a counter-narrative to the violence — one of solidarity, compassion, and the enduring hope that peace will return.
As the nation reels from the tragedy, stories such as this — of a young man putting his life at risk to protect strangers — serve as a poignant reminder of the humanity that continues to bind people together even in the darkest of times.
