He attained real prestige in the inter-college/inter-university fest ‘Prestige-2014’ organised by Islamic University of Science and Technology (IUST), Awantipora. In the documentary screening competition, Hangul’s Last Abode, documented by Syed Abdul Mohsin Andrabi in 2012, was declared the winner.
“This world of digitisation leaves no space for old stuff,” says Mohsin, adding, “but my documentary left an eternal impression on the minds of the audience and the jury.”
Mohsin, hailing from Ratnipora town in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district, is pursuing a bachelor’s at Government Degree College in the area.
Interestingly, coming from a sports background with his father as a Physical Education Lecturer and his mother a government school teacher, Mohsin has always won laurels in the sports field.
He was the youngest cricket player in the 15th All India Twenty 20 Cricket Federation Cup last year. He represented J&K State several times in many games held in mainland India. He was part of the J&K Green Team in the 17th All India Twenty20 Cricket Federation Cup 2013, in which 16 teams from all over India participated. His team, J&K Greens, qualified for the semi-finals.
“My dad has been the inspiration and I have never seen a sports person like him in my life,” Mohsin asserts, “and mom always takes care of my diet.”
Not only cricket, but Mohsin has been playing shooting ball, hockey, football, and tennis as well. In 2004, he was awarded the Youngest Athlete of the Year. He also carried the baton of the Commonwealth Games 2010, New Delhi, in Srinagar.
After his schooling at Delhi Modern Public School, Pulwama, up to 10th standard, he joined Mehjoor Memorial Boys Higher Secondary School, Pulwama. During his schooling, he represented the state in the 38th Jawaharlal Nehru National Science Exhibition in Patna.
The year 2012 proved lucky for Mohsin. He got selected in the 99th Indian Science Congress and scored to count himself among the top 20 scientists of India. His projects were highly appreciated by many scientists and Nobel laureates, including Dr APJ Kalam, Dr Richard R. Ernest from Zurich, Switzerland and Kurt Wuthrich (Nobel laureates in Chemistry).
“It was really a great achievement of my life to stand with these personalities,” says Mohsin, “and getting appreciation from them was beyond my imagination.”
Mohsin has always wished his Valley free of corruption, poverty and conflict. He joined the Youth Parliament of Jammu & Kashmir in 2011 with a motto to be a part of their ‘solution’.
“I can’t close the chapter of conflict and social issues but at least I can reduce their intensity,” feels Mohsin.
Being a nature lover and wildlife photographer, he managed many awareness campaigns to bring forth the importance of saving nature and its products. He campaigned for saving the national animal Hangul and became a young social activist.
He is one of the founders of Youth Art Club, which claims to work for the sake of providing a platform to budding artists of Kashmir. He is also an educator at Adobe Youth Voice [Kashmir], a programme of Adobe International.
Back in 2012, when Mohsin joined Adobe Youth Voice, he started filmmaking: “As I said, the digital world has squeezed the spaces. So, I thought of making films to showcase what is our own.”
Besides the latest screened Hangul’s Last Abode, Mohsin switched his lens to Karewa of Pampore: “Saffron – The Pride of Kashmir” is my second film, which is yet to be screened. The third one is “What are Human Rights?”
It is not only Mohsin’s adventure with moving films, but he has got many prizes in photography at school and college levels as well.
“No matter if it is humans or animals, I have equal concerns for both,” says Mohsin, adding, “to serve Kashmir in every possible way is my goal.”
Mohsin’s message to the growing buds of Kashmir is: to be ready for setbacks (they are a part of life), serve your habitat in every possible way, be helpful to the needy, fulfil your dreams and make everyone feel proud.
“I have faced plenty of setbacks on the way to my achievements, but what helped me was the courage to get up again,” he says.
