Balaji Ice Factory

Our place is right at Brafwala Gaddi Gaudam Square, just across from Gole Bazar. It’s a very active spot with the market right there. You can hear the vegetable sellers calling out while we are working on the ice blocks. We’ve been a part of this square for a long time. People around here just call us the ice shop. We don’t have a big sign or anything like that because everyone knows the location already. The work is pretty straightforward. We fill up the metal cans with water, lower them into the brine, and wait for them to freeze solid. Then we pull them out, tip them over, and the blocks slide out. It takes some muscle to move them around. The market vendors are our biggest customers since they need to keep their produce fresh. We see them every morning before the sun gets too high in the sky. It’s a damp environment and the smell of the refrigeration gas is something you get used to after a while. We aren't trying to be anything special, just a local factory that keeps the neighborhood supplied. Sometimes kids come by and we give them a small piece of ice to suck on when it’s hot. That’s just how it is around Gole Bazar. We spend most of our day in our boots, moving heavy things around and watching the clock for the next batch.