Santasi Ma Bhandar

Santasi Ma Bhandar is tucked away on School Lane in Kolkata, right near the Aikatan Club. It is a quiet enough street compared to the big main roads, but it still has plenty of life, especially when there is something going on at the club. Our shop is just a basic neighborhood store where we keep the usual groceries that families need for their daily meals. The walls are lined with wooden shelves that have seen better days, and they are packed with jars of spices, bags of rice, and various household items. During the monsoon, the air gets really heavy and damp, and you can smell the rain on the pavement outside. We don't have any air conditioning or fancy decorations, just a couple of old tube lights and a heavy counter where we weigh out the goods. It gets a bit cramped when a few people come in at the same time, especially during the morning rush when everyone is trying to get things done before the heat of the day sets in. We’ve been here for a good while, so we know the local residents who stop by for their tea leaves or a packet of biscuits. It’s a very straightforward way of working, just keeping the inventory up and making sure the staples are always available. We don’t do anything fancy with the packaging or the shop front. It is just a place for the community to get their basic supplies.