Nestled amidst the picturesque landscapes of the Kashmir Valley, the Dal has become an icon for promoters of tourism in the area. The Dal, however, also presents a sorrowful tale of the overlooked existence of an indigenous fishermen community, the Hanjis, who have depended on the lake (and fishing there) for generations. The Hanjis, as custodians of the Dal, who formerly relied on its resources for livelihood, are now at the precarious risk of extreme marginalisation and vulnerability due to the disturbance of the earlier perceived equilibrium between preserving ‘tradition’ and catering to the needs of ad-hoc expansion of urban development