Srinagar, May 11 -- That morning, the sky above Shopian was pale and hushed. Snow clung to rooftops and pear trees, blanketed the narrow path leading to the old wooden gate. Crows had not yet started their chorus. In the room above the kitchen, she pulled the curtain back with fingers still warm from sleep and let in the whiteness.

Outside, children were already at play. One boy in a saffron cap slid down a slope, arms spread wide, while two girls scooped snow to mold a kangri that fell apart before it took shape. Smoke curled up from the neighbour's kitchen. A cluster of elders stood around a crackling fire, the men's noses red from the cold, their breath mixing with the smoke in the air.

She watched it all in silence. Her breath fogge...