Srinagar, June 29 -- In towns and villages of the valley, a silent transaction often shadows the most sacred of ceremonies. Marriages here are not always about love or faith. Often, they are about price tags.

The dowry system, outlawed but thriving, keeps families on edge. It forces fathers to measure their daughters in grams of gold and furniture lists. In many Kashmiri homes, a daughter's wedding is not a celebration. It's a debt waiting to happen.

It's rarely strangers who make the demands. It's the well-off families, the ones who believe they are entitled to cars, cash, and endless gifts. They set their terms with ease. No dowry, no marriage.

The pressure begins early. Poor families scramble to meet impossible demands. They borrow....