Jai Bavani Kirana

I started Jai Bavani Kirana at Plot No 19 near the Indhira Gandhi Statu in Attapur because I lived in this part of Hyderabad for years. It is a straightforward grocery shop where I sell things like rice, dal, and spices. The statu is a good landmark for people trying to find us. Usually, my shop is quite full of bags and containers because I like to have enough stock for everyone. It is not like those big air-conditioned malls. It is just a local room with wooden shelves. I spend most of my time weighing out sugar or packing pulses into small plastic bags. The floor is concrete and sometimes I have to move heavy sacks around, which is hard on the back. My kids sometimes come by after school to help or just sit in the back. Customers here are mostly the families living in the nearby apartments. They come in for a kilo of atta or some turmeric powder when they are cooking dinner. I know which brand of tea most people prefer without even asking them now. It gets busy in the evenings when everyone is coming home from work. I try to stay open until late so nobody goes without their milk for the morning. It is a lot of standing around, but I enjoy talking to the regulars who have been coming here since I first opened the doors to the neighborhood.