Srinagar, June 19 -- There was a time when weekends in Kashmir meant something more than a break from work. They served as a bridge between people.

After a demanding week, families would gather over noon chai, visit relatives across town, spend long afternoons in conversation, or head to a nearby garden and return home with stories rather than photographs. The weekend belonged to relationships.

That idea is changing before our eyes.

Urban Kashmir is especially living through a period when many households are stretching every hour of the day in pursuit of financial stability. A growing number of people juggle additional assignments, side businesses, freelance projects, and extended work schedules. The result appears in places where stat...