Vijayvargia Kirana Bhandar

Our place is Vijayvargia Kirana Bhandar and we are located in Nayapura. It is a typical grocery store that has been part of this neighborhood for a long time. The shop is filled with the scent of raw spices, pulses, and large bags of flour. We don't have much space to move around because we try to stock everything a household might need. There are stacks of soap boxes near the entrance and heavy jars of pickles on the upper shelves. We spend a lot of our time measuring out sugar or lentils into plastic bags for the local residents who stop by. The floor is made of old grey stone and it has some cracks here and there from years of moving heavy crates. We have a small wooden desk where we keep the accounts and a heavy iron safe for the cash. It is a very hands-on kind of job. We get dusty from the flour bags and our hands usually smell like coriander or turmeric by the end of the day. Nayapura is a place where everyone knows everyone, so a lot of our time is spent just talking to customers about their families while we weigh their vegetables. We don't have any fancy checkout counters or scanners. Everything is done by hand and eye. It’s a simple way of living and we have stayed at this same address because it feels like home to us now.