Aarcee Mittal & Bros

Aarcee Mittal & Bros is located at 1723-24 in Bhagirath Palace, which is probably the most crowded electrical market you’ll ever see. If you’ve ever walked through those narrow lanes in Chandni Chowk, you know how it is. Our shop is packed from floor to ceiling with boxes. There’s barely enough room for three people to stand behind the counter at once. It’s a family-run kind of thing, and things can get pretty loud when several customers are all asking for different things at the same time. The air is thick with the smell of old paper and electrical components. We don't have any fancy displays; we just know where everything is, even if it looks like a maze to someone else. We spend the day fetching items from the high shelves and writing out bills by hand. The fans overhead just move the warm air around, and there’s always the sound of rickshaw bells and people shouting outside. It’s a chaotic place but there’s a rhythm to it that we’re used to. We have regulars who have been buying from us for decades. We don't do anything special to get people in; they just know we’re here at these shop numbers. It’s a long day, usually starting with opening the shutters and ending with counting the cash and stock under the dim lights of the market before we lock up for the night and head home through the busy streets.