Memory, Resistance, and Decolonization in Kashmir: A Fanonian interpretation of “Don’t remind me of my flaws” and “To the disappeared” by Farah Bashir

Abstract

This study examines the nexus of memory, resistance, and decolonization in Kashmir through a Fanonian interpretation of Farah Bashir’s poems Don’t Remind Me of My flaws and To the Disappeared. Drawing from Frantz Fanon’s Black Skins, White Masks, and The Wretched of the Earth, this article explores how Bashir’s poetry reflects the psychological wounds of colonization and the resistance of Kashmiri people in the face of settler-colonial violence. This study situated Kashmir within the framework of settler colonialism, highlighting the ongoing processes of cultural erasure, enforced disappearances, and systematic violence. Bashir’s poetry functions as a tool of resistance. Don’t Remind Me of My Flaws reveals the internalized alienation and trauma imposed by the colonizer and To the Disappeared memorializes the victims of enforced disappearances. By foregrounding the role of literature in anti-colonial struggles, this article underscores the importance of Kashmiri voices in resisting violence. Finally, it argues that memory, as manifested in Bashir’s poetry serves as a radical act of resistance against the erasure of Kashmiri history and identity.