Raj Wood Work

The workshop is on Ragavan Street in Nethaji Nagar. It’s usually pretty loud with the saws running most of the afternoon. I’ve been doing wood work here in Kodambakkam for quite some time now. Mostly it’s making cupboards or fixing up old chairs that people bring in when they break. There’s always sawdust on the floor no matter how much we sweep it up. It gets in your hair and your clothes. We handle the basic stuff like plywood and some solid wood if that’s what someone specifically wants for a table. It’s a small space, so we have to move things around to fit a big project. My hands are usually covered in glue or wood stain by midday. We don’t have a big office or anything. People just walk into the shed and tell us what they need. Sometimes it’s a kitchen cabinet that won't close right or a drawer that is stuck. Other times it’s a whole bed frame. We use regular tools, nothing too high-tech. It takes time to get the joints to sit flat. I have a few helpers who come in when things get busy. We get most of our wood from the local timber yard nearby. The street can get crowded with bikes, so loading the finished pieces into a van is always a bit of a struggle for us. We just try to get the measurements right the first time. It’s hard work on the back, but it's what we do.