Heady scents fill the air as skilled pickers in India pluck white jasmine before the still fresh buds are rushed for processing into a valuable ingredient for global perfumes.

Jasmine only issues its powerful scent when it blooms at night, and pickers must select only the ones yet to open.

¡°We know which one to pick,¡± said Malarkodi, who gave only one name, as she snapped her fingers carefully to pluck the buds, tucking into her hair a few flowers that had already bloomed.