70-year-old Kashmiri craftsman, Abdul Khaliq Najar,  has spent his life making and repairing houseboats in the Valley. He is the seventh generation in his family who were engaged in construction of houseboats. Najar is the only person alive among the ones who were known for their mastery in the making of houseboats, which attract tourists from around the world in Dal and Nigeen Lake. Najar has for decades made a living out of repairing and building new houseboats. However, he is currently in despair given the dwindling work due to dire shortage of deodar wood,  used in houseboats.

Najar has made boats not only in Kashmir but also in Jharkhand, Calcutta and Ganga Sagar. Najar knows the end to houseboat-making, and thereby the heritage of Kashmir, is imminent as no one is eager to take up the craft, even his son has taken up another profession.