Mahavir Stores

We open up the shutters every morning here at Mahavir Stores in Dhan Mandi. It’s usually pretty dusty outside because of all the trucks coming in and out of Purani Mandi. My father used to handle the bags of grain and now I do. It’s a lot of lifting and counting. Most days are just us sitting on the wooden benches waiting for the regular families to come by for their monthly supplies. We keep everything stacked up to the ceiling, sometimes it’s hard to find the exact brand of tea someone wants, but we get there. The tea stall next door brings us a glass every couple of hours which helps when the heat gets bad in the summer. It isn’t fancy at all. The floor is old stone and the walls could use a new coat of paint, but it works for us. People come here because they know where everything is. We don't change much. There’s a cat that hangs around the back where we keep the sacks of rice. Sometimes the traffic in the lane gets so backed up that customers just leave their scooters and walk the rest of the way to the counter. It's just a regular shop in a busy part of town. We’ve been here a long time and seen the market change, but the smell of spices and grains stays the same every day. We close the doors when the sun goes down and the market gets quiet again.