Pan Bhandar

Our shop is right there on Dodda Mavalli Lalbagh Fort Road, near Mavalli Mosque at number 86. It’s just a small corner spot where we sell pan and some other small things. We’ve been here for years, watching the traffic go by. Most people stop here after they finish their prayers at the mosque or when they are just walking through the neighborhood. We have the usual stuff, sweet pan, tobacco pan, and some cigarettes. It’s not a fancy place at all. The wooden counter is old and the jars are filled with different supari and masalas. We open up early in the morning and stay open until late at night. Sometimes the street gets really dusty because of all the construction nearby, but we just keep wiping the jars down. My brother and I take turns sitting here. There is no place to sit down, so everyone just stands around on the pavement for a few minutes while they chew their pan. We get all sorts of people, from laborers to guys in cars who pull over for a quick fix. We don't do anything special, just give people what they want. It’s a simple way to make a living. The area is always busy, and we’ve become a part of the daily routine for many regulars who live around here. We just keep things moving one day at a time without much fuss.