In the remote hilly hamlet of Langanbal near Pahalgam, where the mist-laden mountains stand as silent witnesses, women like Amina Begum are rewriting their life stories, one cheese wheel at a time.

For 35-year-old Amina, life was once a predictable cycle of household chores and financial struggles. “My husband’s income barely kept us afloat,” she says, sitting in her modest kitchen in Srigufwara. It was hard to imagine making a monetary contribution to the family,” she says.

But her life took a turn in 2011, when she heard about a factory hiring women to make cheese—a skill she never knew, nor thought of learning.

Today, Amina is part of a team of women who work at Himalayan Products, an artisanal cheese brand started by Dutch entrepreneur Chris Zande. The initiative, which began over a decade ago, focuses on employing women from underprivileged backgrounds and equipping them with specialised skills.

The struggle to step out

“When I first mentioned working in a factory, people in my village were dismissive,” Amina recalls. “Even my in-laws were skeptical. They questioned what a woman could possibly gain from working outside the home.”

The skepticism wasn’t unwarranted. In Kashmir’s patriarchal society, women’s mobility and financial independence are often restricted. For many women, the idea of employment brings with it a social stigma.