Srinagar, May 23 -- I was in 11th grade in 2007. My friends and I spent most of our days dreaming about the future: what courses we'd pick, what colleges we'd aim for. But one thing we never talked about was starting a business. That just wasn't in the air around us. Our parents wanted us to be doctors, engineers, judges. Anything steady, anything safe.

Only one classmate ever mentioned business. His older brother ran a small travel agency. He'd talk about cabs, tourists, and how Kashmir could thrive if peace lasted.

Slowly, his confidence rubbed off on some of us. A few even began to imagine running their own ventures. But we always hit the same wall: how do you do business in a place where life can be shut down overnight?

Then 2008 a...