Journey From Pit to Peak

Shashi Kaul

Most Kashmiri Pandits born in the 70s and 80’s will have a story to share that will often be a testament of resilience, and the pursuit of excellence. Born in a village near the holy city of Anantnag, in the heart of Kashmir, Shashi grew up in a close-knit Pandit family. His childhood was filled with the micro celebrations of life’s small joys, which was a way of life back then. A difficult upbringing from perspective of materiality and insufficient money in the household. Sole focus was education and human interaction and in fact it sheltered Shashi’s upbringing from the harsh realities of insurgencies and tear in the secular fabric of the Kashmir as a result, which eventually laid foundation for his incredible grit and determination.

For his early education, Shashi attended National, Caset and Walden schools in Srinagar. Like many Kashmiri families, academic excellence was the primary focus.  

Initially Shashi was in oblivion to the typical schooling back in his junior years. A dyslexic (wasn’t known until later years), but excellent with numbers, Shashi managed to get through his schooling years.

Despite the challenging times due to the peak of insurgency in Kashmir during the 90s, losing everything overnight, Shashi’s determination and pursuit of knowledge led him to three masters degrees in three separate disciplines. These incredibly difficult and formative years marked the beginning of his resilient journey. One thing Shashi was always known for was challenging the status quo and not doing things as per convention. Shashi would always ask, ‘why can’t we do this’? and try to do things that often his peers would say ‘you can’t do that’.

Now settled in Australia in the capital city of Canberra, this desire of thinking about things differently, over the years allowed Shashi to get involved with Australian foundations such as, Brave hearts, Make a wish and Hands across the water, and several other charities. A group of friends together started a trust to the support the functioning of a school in India. They were keen to instigate a system that could attract attention and consequently enhance funding for the school.  

Now, in a position to give back to society, Shashi has dedicated himself to making a positive impact, especially for kids that do not have enough parental support. At first the idea was to raise funding by running, climbing a few hills as an adventure etc. Shashi is passionate about philanthropy; his north star is to promote the welfare of others and leave a slightly a better world for our children. Shashi’s philanthropy work has led him to participate in endurance events mainly to raise funds. The group started with a few minor mountaineering challenges to get some funding. In the process the group became obsessed about climbing. Slowly they started to take bigger challenges, whilst Shashi personally became an alpine and Everest enthusiast. 

Shashi has climbed, Mount Everest, Mount Aconcagua and Kilimanjaro, and he runs marathons regularly.  

Shashi plans to capture seven summits, including:

1. Mount Everest – completed (2017)

2. Aconcagua– completed (2014)

3. Kilimanjaro – completed (2013 and 2019)

4. Mount Kosciuszko – completed (2013)

5. Vinson – To be completed 

6. Denali – To be completed 

7. Mauna Kea – To be completed 

Recent Marathons and Half Marathons

March 23 – Weston Creek half Marathon 

April 23 – Canberra full Marathon 

June 23 – Canberra half Marathon

September 23 – Sydney full Marathon