Srinagar, Feb. 4 -- Sameer Ahmad Jan, 31, worked for nearly six years in a private company in Bangkok.

A techie by profession, he found a huge demand for shawls, carpets, and wooden items in the country.

A resident of Srinagar's old city, he quit his job and launched his venture of Kashmiri handicrafts in Bangkok. "The demand for shawls, carpets, rugs, and wooden articles has shot up across the world. My showroom, which employs eight people, deals with the sales of Kashmir handicrafts. I get a good number of customers from Europe who visit Bangkok for tourism," he said.

Like Jan,a growing number of educated youth in Kashmir are embracing the region's rich handicraft heritage, using their skills and modern business acumen to launch glob...