Rajendar Bhandar

Our shop is right in the thick of things at Barabazar Market, specifically at 167 Netaji Subhas Road in Fairley Place. If you know this area, you know how crowded and loud it gets. There are people everywhere and handcarts pushing through the lanes at all hours. Rajendar Bhandar has been sitting here through all the changes in the city. We sell all sorts of items, mostly things people need for their daily cooking or household supplies. The walls are lined with wooden cubbies and old metal tins. It is a bit dark inside, even during the day, so we keep the overhead bulbs on. We don't have a computer system to track everything; we still use a handwritten ledger most of the time. It works for us. My father used to sit in the same chair where I sit now. We don't try to compete with those big supermarkets. We just know our customers by name and remember what they usually buy. Sometimes the stock arrives late because of the traffic on Netaji Subhas Road, which is always a mess. We just stack the crates where they fit and keep going. It is a bit disorganized to an outsider, but we know exactly where every single item is hidden on those high shelves. It is just a regular old-fashioned shop in a very busy part of town.