Srinagar, May 19 -- Near a bend in the busy Pantha Chowk highway, just outside Srinagar, sits a man behind a stall patched together with plastic sheets and weathered ropes. There are sacks of red beans, pulses, and packets of vegetable seeds stacked around him. His hands, calloused and steady, sort through the day's stock with practiced care.

Rajab Dar is 85 years old. Most days, he arrives before sunrise and stays until the last bus leaves. He doesn't call it a business, never has. "Just work," he says with a shrug, as if it's the most natural thing in the world. And for him, it is

"I never thought small work is something to be ashamed of," he continues, lifting his head as another customer approaches. "It fed my family. That's enough ...