Sri Venkateshwara Fruits

Sri Venkateshwara Fruits is located at Chamrajpet 1st Main, Phase III 2. We get here very early, usually before the sun is even up, to bring in the fresh crates from the market. The shop is filled with the smell of whatever is in season, like mangoes or oranges. We stack the fruit in wooden crates and on the tables out front. It’s a lot of lifting and moving things around all day. The floor can get a bit slippery if any fruit gets squashed, so we try to keep it swept. We have a small scale that we’ve used for years; it’s a bit old but it’s accurate. People from the nearby apartments come by in the mornings to pick out what they need for the day. We don't use plastic bags much anymore, so most folks bring their own cloth bags. Sometimes the fruit doesn't look perfect, maybe a bruise here or there, but it tastes good. We try to be honest about what’s sweet and what’s still a bit sour. It’s a simple life, just selling what grows. My hands are usually sticky by midday, and I’m always wiping them on a rag. We close up when the stock runs low or when it gets too dark to see the colors clearly. We’ve been at this Chamrajpet spot for a while and the regulars know our names by now.