Prahladrai & Sons

Prahladrai & Sons is located on Nagdevi Street. If you know Mumbai, you know this is the place for hardware. Our office is number 2 on the first floor of building 61/63. It’s an old building, like most of them on this street. The stairs are narrow and always crowded with people carrying boxes or rolls of wire. We’ve been here for a very long time. My grandfather was the one who first set things up. We deal with tools, pipes, and all sorts of industrial hardware. The office is small and the walls are lined with shelves that go all the way to the ceiling. We have files that are decades old. It’s a bit cramped, but it’s home to us. Nagdevi Street is always loud. You hear the shouting of loaders and the horns of trucks all day. We spend our time taking orders, checking stock, and making sure the right items go to the right shops. We don't have a website or anything like that. People just call us or come by because they've been buying from us for generations. We know the regular visitors by name. It’s a business built on trust and knowing exactly what kind of bolt or valve someone needs. Sometimes we have tea with the other traders while we wait for a delivery. It’s a traditional way of doing things, and it works for us. The fan in the office makes a rhythmic clicking sound that we barely notice anymore. We keep our old heavy keys in a wooden bowl by the door.