SRINAGAR: Amid the madness of infiltrations, terror strikes and talk of another surgical strike, a Kashmiri Muslim man and his Pandit friend have joined hands to promote football in the Valley. Meet I-League newbie Real Kashmir FC's co-owners, Shamim Meraj and Sandeep Chattoo.The duo formed the club in 2016 after witnessing the plight of the youth two years earlier during the devastating 2014 floods. Most playgrounds were submerged, and the youngsters were directionless.To make the club work, they needed to cross many invisible red lines that exist in a turbulent state like Jammu and Kashmir, including those drawn by religion and politics. But football became a common ground for them. "We wanted to channelize the energy of the Kashmiri youth in a positive way. That's when the idea of forming a club came up," Meraj, who is an alumnus of St Stephen's College, Delhi, remembers."Shamim and I have done it together, as a Hindu and a Muslim," chips in Chattoo. "We want to make a difference; we want to bring a football revolution in Kashmir. We want to make this Paradise on Earth a Paradise for Football."

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