Kaushal Paints & Hardware Store

Our shop is Kaushal Paints & Hardware Store, and we are tucked away at 889 Darya Ganj, in the Kamra Bangas area near the Khajoor Wali Masjid. This part of Darya Ganj is very old and the streets are narrow and winding. It is almost always crowded with people walking, rickshaws, and carts delivering goods. We have been in this same spot for a very long time, through many changes in the city. The shop itself is small and packed to the ceiling with everything from paint tins to plumbing pipes and heavy tools. Sometimes it is hard for two people to even stand in the aisle at the same time because there is so much stuff everywhere. We know most of our customers by their first names because they live just a few streets away. Working so close to the masjid means we hear the calls to prayer throughout the day, which gives a nice rhythm to our work. It is not the easiest place to get to if you are driving a car, but for the people who live here, it is just around the corner. We do not do any big marketing; we just keep the doors open and talk to the people who stop by. Sometimes the power goes out and we have to use a torch to find what someone needs, but that is just life here in the old city.