Pankaj Sharma

My workspace is inside the Taj Complex on Railway Road here in Rishikesh. It is a busy area because the train station is so close by. You see all sorts of people walking past the windows, from travelers with big bags to locals just doing their daily shopping. The complex is an older building and it shows its age in some places. My office isn't very big, just enough room for a desk, a couple of chairs for people to sit on, and some old filing cabinets. I keep a lot of my work in those cabinets, mostly papers and records from over the years. Rishikesh is a beautiful place, but Railway Road is mostly just noise and dust. I usually keep the door closed to keep the street sound out while I am working. I have been working under my own name here for a good number of years. It is a simple routine for me. I arrive, make some tea on the small stove I keep in the back, and start going through my list for the day. Sometimes the power goes out in the afternoon and I have to move my chair closer to the window light to see what I am doing. The Taj Complex has a few other shops, like a tailor and a small tea stall, so there is always someone to talk to. It is just a practical place to get things done.