Shukla Bricks

Out in Rampur village in Shahdol, we have the Shukla Bricks yard. We are situated right near the Hanuman Temple, which is a good landmark for people trying to find us. The temple bells are often the background noise to our workday. We are a small group of people working here, mostly just locals who know how to handle the clay. The soil in this part of Shahdol is good for making bricks, and we try to make the most of it. We don't have an office with air conditioning or anything like that. We just have a small shack with a table and a few ledgers. Most of the business happens outside, standing in the dirt while we count the loads. It is a very seasonal business. When the monsoon hits, everything slows down and we spend more time covering the piles with plastic sheets than actually selling anything. But when the sun is out, we are busy from dawn until dusk. We’ve seen the village grow over the years, and many of the houses around here were built with the bricks that passed through our hands. It makes us feel like we belong to the place. We don’t do any advertising. People just know where we are and come by when they need something. We offer them a seat, maybe some water, and we talk about the work. It’s a basic way to live, but it’s honest and it keeps us going day after day.