Ramesh Jaggeries

Ramesh Jaggeries is located at House Number 1333 on the main Bazar Road in Bailhongal. If you walk down the road, you can usually smell the sweetness of the jaggery before you even see the shop. It’s a busy street, full of people buying their daily supplies and food. We’ve been here for many years, tucked into this spot in the bazaar. Jaggery is a big part of life here, and we handle a lot of it every day. The blocks come in from the producers, and we stack them up in the shop. It’s sticky work, and the floors always need cleaning because of the sugar. We don't have a big corporate office or anything like that. It’s just the shop and the storage area. People come in to buy a few kilos or sometimes much more for festivals or weddings. We know most of our regulars and their families. We have short conversations while we weigh out the orders and wrap them up. The noise of the bazaar is something you get used to after a while. Bikes honking, people shouting, and the general bustle of the market. It gets very crowded on market days, and you can hardly move on the road. We start early in the morning to get everything ready before the crowds arrive. It’s a simple business, really. We just focus on getting decent jaggery and selling it at a fair price. My father did this before me, and I’ve just kept it going.