Ahmed Kirana

I’ve run Ahmed Kirana at 17-1-182/3/B in Edi Bazar for a long time. Santosh Nagar is always active. There are voices and the smell of cooking food from the nearby houses all day long. The shop is small and the shelves are quite crowded with all sorts of packets. I have everything from cooking oil to light bulbs and washing powder. It’s a bit of a squeeze when more than three people come into the shop at once. Hyderabad gets really hot in the summer, so the stone floor is the best part of the whole shop because it stays cool. I don't have a lot of modern things here. I use a simple scale for the grains and a pen for the accounts. The front of the shop has some crates of eggs stacked up near the entrance. You have to be careful not to knock them over when you walk in. Most of my customers have been coming here since they were little children. Now they are grown and bring their own kids to buy sweets. It makes me feel old, but it’s a nice feeling. We don't have any big neon signs or bright lights. Just a small bulb over the counter and the natural light from the street. I keep a jar of cool water for myself behind the counter. Sometimes the supply trucks block the narrow road, and the neighbors get a bit annoyed with the noise. I have to go out and tell the driver to move. Part of the day.