Kalash Valley is a group of three small valleys: Brir, Bumburet and Rambur. Brir lies at the southern most tip of Chitral at a distance of 34 km (21 miles) and is easily accessible by jeep-able road via Ayun. It is especially ideal for those not used to trekking. Bumburet, the largest and the most picturesque valley of the Kafir Kalash, is 36 km.(22 miles) from Chitral and is connected by a jeep-able road.
Rambur is 32 km (20 miles) from Chitral, the road is jeep-able. Foreign tourists require permits for visiting the Kalash valleys. Permits are issued free of cost by the Deputy Commissioner, Chitral, Tel: 1. Foreign visitors have to pay a toll tax of Rs.10 per person while Re. 1.00 per person is charged from domestic tourists.
These valleys have an alpine climate. The people inhabiting these valleys are the primitive pagan tribes of Pakistan, who are known as Kafir Kalash, which means the wearers of the black robes. Their origin is cloaked in controversy. A legend says that soldiers from the legions of the Macedonian conqueror, Alexander, settled in Chitral and are the progenitors of the Kalash.
The Kalasha culture is unique and tourist comes from all over the world here to see the beauty of this unique culture. Each year a many historians, anthropologists, sociologists and photographers from all over the world focus the Kalasha society. The numerical strength of the Kalasha people is about only 4,000 (as estimated in 2010).
4,000 (as estimated in 2010).
They live in small villages built on the hillsides near the banks of streams. Their houses are constructed of rough-hewn logs and are double storied because of the steepness of the slopes. Kalash are very lively people and are famous for their lively religious festivals namely: Chilimjusht (spring), Phool (September) and Chowas (from 21st December for a week). The Kalash love music and their instruments are drums and flutes. Their colorful dances impart a feeling of peace, joy and contentment. If you join them in their dance, they interpret it as a sign friendship and will open their hearts to you and reveal some of their mysteries, their joys and sorrows. You depart with a sense of poignancy and nostalgia for these beautiful children of nature and nagging fear that all the sweetness and innocence may soon be swept away forever by the power and intolerance that often hide themselves under the banner of progress.
The history of Kalasha is disputed. Today many hypothesises appear about the origin of the Kalasha tribe of Chitral. Until now two major hypothesises have been strongly developed about the origin of the Kalasha: Indo-Aryan origin and Greek origin. The hypothesis of Indo-Aryan origin is supported by George Morgenstierne, R.C.F. Schomberg Karl Jettmar and Peter Parks. While other hypothesis give the impression that the Kalasha are relatively recent newcomers or Greeks in origin. This hypothesis was formulated by H. Siiger and is supported by two French anthropologists, Jeans Yves Loude and Viviane Lievre.
Captain John Wood wrote a book A Personal description of a Journey to the Source of the River Oxus by the Route of the Indus, Kabul and Badakhshan, published in 1841. Captain Wood, although, did not visit the Kafiristan (land of Kafirs) but he collected valuable information of the region; ethnicity and society. He hardly believed that the Kafirs people are European breed. He puts a new idea that the Kafirs people had linkage with the Tajiks of Badakhshan.
Saifullah Jan, a Kalasha spokesman, revealed the tradition of the Kalasha history that the first homeland of the Kalasha people was Tsyam (and no one knows where is this Tsyam on the globe) where from their forefather Shalak Shah came to Chitral with an army. At Chitral four sons were born to Shalak Shah. He had divided Chitral among his four sons. There is a historical gap regarding what happened after Shalak Shah, nobody knows.
In recent times DNA tests were made to examine the Greek origin of the Kalasha. The Pakistani genetic scientist Dr. Qasim Ayub concluded through the DNA tests the Kalasha people do not have Greek origin. However they believed that the Kalasha belong to the Aryan stock. Now, “there is a consensus today that they are of the Indo-Aryan stock having migrated to Afghanistan maybe a couple of thousand years back.”
“Most anthropologists consider the Kalasha religion to be polytheistic, because it has many deities.” Their major deities are:
• Sajigor
• Mahandeo
• Balumain
• Dezalik
• Ingaw
• Jestak
There are two types of religious events in Kalasha society. The first kind may be considered as having a religious ceremony as well as festivities while other events are only religious in nature, without dancing and singing. The Kalasha observe many festivals in a year, their major festivals are:
Joshi, celebrated in May to welcome the spring
Uchaw, observed in late August to ensure good crops of wheat
Pul/Poh, observed September, only in the Birir Valley
Chaumos, observed in December for more than two weeks, it is the grand festival of the Kalasha tribe and it is celebrated to welcome New Year
.