Barabati Rice Mill

The Barabati Rice Mill sits at 73/1, Lgb Nagar, on the 2nd Street in Ramakrishnapuram. It’s right off Sathy Road in Saravanampatti, which is a place that has changed a lot lately. Even with all the new buildings going up, we’ve stayed pretty much the same. The mill is a noisy place when the machines are running, and there’s always a fine dusting of rice hulls in the air. We’ve all got used to the sound, though visitors usually find it a bit much. We work with local farmers who bring in their harvest, and we spend our time processing it so it’s ready for the market. It’s a lot of physical work, and your back definitely feels it by the end of the shift. We aren’t a corporate outfit with suits and meetings; we’re just a bunch of people in work clothes getting things done. The neighborhood is full of small businesses like ours, so there’s a good sense of being in it together. Sometimes the machines break down and we have to spend the whole afternoon fixing them, which is frustrating but just part of the job. We don’t make any big promises or talk about being the best. We just run the mill, bag the rice, and make sure the accounts are settled. It’s been our life for a long time now. We just take it day by day.