Dinesh Jain

We spend most of our days here at 126 in the Shopping Centre. It is right in the middle of the Furniture Market in Kota. If you walk by, you will probably hear the sound of saws or see people moving heavy wooden frames around. The air often smells like sawdust and polish. It is not a very quiet place, but it is where we do our work every day. We have been in this spot for a while now. The building is a bit old and the stairs can be narrow when someone is carrying a chair down. We keep our paperwork on a desk that has seen better days, but it works for us. Most people who come here are looking for something specific for their house. We just sit here and handle whatever comes through the door. Sometimes the Rajasthan heat gets pretty bad in the afternoons, so we keep the fan running at full speed. It is a simple setup. There are no fancy decorations or anything. Just the tools, the wood, and us trying to get things done before the sun goes down. Most of our neighbors are doing the same thing. You get used to the noise after a while. We know the tea seller nearby by name because he comes around twice a day. He usually brings some biscuits too if we ask. That is pretty much how things go around here at our place in the market. It is not glamorous, but it is home to our daily grind.