The Shelton Grand

Aziz Kalwani is the name you’ll usually hear if you come around here to Balappa Garden looking for us. We are over on the first floor of the building on B Street in Tusker Town. It’s an old part of Bangalore, 560 051, and it has a lot of character that you don’t find in the newer parts of the city. The stairs up to the first floor are a bit narrow and steep, so you have to watch your step if you’re carrying anything heavy. It’s not one of those places with a big glass front and a dozen people in suits waiting to talk to you. It’s just us. We spend our days answering the phone and writing things down in the big ledger book we keep at the front desk. The neighborhood is full of life, with people shouting in the street and the smell of food from the nearby stalls. Sometimes the heat gets a bit much in the middle of the day, and the old fans just move the warm air around, but we manage. We’ve got some regular visitors who have been coming to us for years. They know the way the door sticks a bit when it’s humid. We don’t try to be anything we aren't. It’s just a place to stay and a place to work. Aziz keeps an eye on things, making sure the lights are off at night and the floors are swept. It’s just a practical way to run things.