A police station set on fire. An Air Force bus set on fire. An attempt to set a railway station on fire. The flames lick the air, fanning months of tension, bitterness. On the streets, a curfew is ignored by protesters marching, the steady rhythm of their force advancing forcing people to retreat further into their homes. In Kashmir, they say the fierce present is a chilling flashback to two decades ago, when militancy first took seed.