Kachchhawa General Store

At Kachchhawa General Store, we are tucked into the Bihari Ganj area near Daulat Bagh, right on Dholabhata Road. The shop has been here long enough that the walls have that specific smell of spices and soap mixed together. We don't have a lot of space, so we have to use every inch, even hanging things from the ceiling hooks. It's a bit of a maze sometimes. I spend most of my afternoon sitting on the stool by the entrance, watching the bikes go by. We sell everything from light bulbs to lentils. Usually, the mornings are quiet until the ladies come out to buy what they need for lunch. I try to keep the floor swept, but with people coming in from the dusty road, it's a losing battle most days. The accounts are kept in a red ledger that’s almost full. We don't do any big advertising or anything; people just know we are here. If someone needs something we don't have, I usually tell them to come back in two days after the supply truck comes. It’s a slow-paced kind of life. Sometimes we close for an hour in the heat of the afternoon just to get a bit of rest. It’s just a normal neighborhood store where you can get your daily needs without any fuss. We know who likes which brand of tea and who always forgets to bring a bag. The street outside can get quite noisy, but inside it’s usually just the sound of the ceiling fan. I keep a few basic medicines and bandages just in case.