A former Indian Army officer’s quiet ride through Jammu and Kashmir’s Shopian district has struck a chord online. In a video posted on Instagram, Brigadier Deep Bhagat (Retd), who served for nearly 30 years in the Indian Army, talked about returning to Shopian without weapons or security.
Bhagat, who once operated in the area during the height of militancy in the 1990s and early 2000s, said such a moment would have been unthinkable earlier in his career.
“I am entering Shopian, and I could never have imagined that I would return here in my lifetime without any weapons and protection. Never,” he said in the video. He added that soldiers who fought militancy in those years would not have believed that a return under such conditions was possible.
‘Just open roads and open hearts’
Bhagat described the experience as surreal. He goes on in the video saying that two decades ago, he moved through Kashmir in combat gear, alert to constant threats. The ex-Army man said that two years ago, he returned on a motorcycle as a tourist and travelled freely on the roads without any protection gear. “No weapon. No protection. Just open roads and open hearts,” he wrote in the caption.
Calling Shopian a place once “whispered in tension”, Bhagat said the warmth and calm he encountered left him deeply moved. “This is what change looks like. This is what hope feels like,” he wrote.
Netizens respond to viral video
The video has so far crossed 5.28 lakh views and continues to draw responses. Many users thanked Bhagat and other soldiers for their service, while others shared their own recent travel experiences in the region.
Comments praising the role of the armed forces poured in, with particular mention of counter-insurgency units for their long-term presence in the Valley. “Always indebted to the Indian Army, especially the RR & SF units for such combing ops to restore peace in part of the country!” one comment read.
Several described Shopian and nearby areas such as Aharbal and Yousmarg as safe, serene and strikingly beautiful.