A Z Rice Mill

If you head down Chandrayangutta Road, you’ll find us at 48-2-44/1. We run the A Z Rice Mill here. It’s a loud place because the machines are running most of the day. You can’t really have a quiet conversation when the hulling is going on. We all have to speak up a bit. The mill has been part of this neighborhood for a long time. People bring their paddy here, and we process it for them. It’s hard work and it gets very hot inside during the afternoon. We don’t have air conditioning, just some big industrial fans that move the air around. My shirt is usually soaked by noon. We don’t have a fancy office. Just a small wooden table where we keep the records and a chair that squeaks. The yard outside is often full of tractors and bullock carts waiting their turn. We try to be fair with everyone and take them in the order they arrive. Sometimes there’s a bit of a wait, but nobody seems to mind too much. They just sit in the shade and talk. We don’t do any marketing or brochures. The word just spreads from one farmer to another. We focus on the machines and making sure the rice comes out clean. It’s what we know how to do. At the end of the day, we shut everything down and the silence feels strange.