Mangal Kirana Store

We’ve been here in Sadar Bazar for a long time. This market is always crowded, and our store is right in the thick of it. It’s a small shop, like most of the ones around here, but we pack it full of everything people need for their kitchens. You’ll see sacks of grains sitting on the floor and rows of jars on the wooden shelves. It’s not the kind of place where you use a shopping cart. You just tell us what you need and we fetch it for you from the back or the high shelves. We know most of the people who come in because they live just a few streets away. In the mornings, it’s mostly women buying things for lunch, and in the evenings, it’s men stopping by on their way home. We don’t have air conditioning or fancy lights. Just a couple of old ceiling fans that hum all day. Sometimes we sit on the stools outside when it’s quiet, but it’s rarely quiet in Sadar Bazar. We take pride in knowing which brand of tea a regular customer likes or how much rice they usually buy for the month. It’s a simple way to live and work. We don't do any advertising; people just know we're here because we've always been here. The wooden counter is worn down from years of use, but it’s still sturdy. We just keep serving the neighborhood.