Look

The shop is called Look and we are on the first floor of a building in Chirag Ali Lane. It’s in the Abids area, which stays busy from morning till night. We are right beside the lane where Sri Ganesh Tiffin Centre is. You can usually smell the frying tiffins and the sambar while you are sitting in our chairs. To get to us, you have to walk up some narrow stairs that are a bit steep. The room has large windows but the view is just the buildings across the street. We have a few stations set up with mirrors and drawers for the tools. It’s not a huge place, so it feels a bit tight when it’s full. We don’t do anything fancy with the decor. It’s just white walls and some basic lighting. The floor is a dark stone that hides the dust well. We get a mix of people, some office workers from the buildings nearby and some people who just finished their breakfast next door. We spend a lot of time standing and moving around the chairs. The scissors make a steady snipping sound all day long. Sometimes the tea boy from downstairs brings us some chai in small glasses. It’s just a work environment like any other. We keep our tools in the drawers and try to keep things organized. It’s a simple business on a busy street. We just keep our heads down and work. The fan helps with the Hyderabad heat during the afternoons.