Maa Gayatri General Store & Provision Store

Running this shop here on Jail Road in Bangla Bazar takes up most of my day. We started Maa Gayatri General Store & Provision Store because there wasn't much around this corner for people to get their daily cooking stuff without walking too far. Most days I’m just moving boxes or checking what we ran out of. The shop is small, but we cram in as much as we can on the wooden shelves. Lucknow weather gets pretty hot so the fan stays on all day while I wait for neighbors to drop by. People usually come in for a single packet of salt or maybe some pulses for dinner. It’s a lot of standing around and talking about the weather or how the road is getting more crowded. I try to keep everything tidy, but with new stock coming in, there’s always some plastic wrap or cardboard lying in the corner. My family helps out sometimes when it gets busy in the evenings. We know most of the people who walk through that door by their first names. It isn't anything fancy, just a regular spot where you can grab what you need and head home. Sometimes the lights flicker when the power goes out, but that’s just how it is in this part of Lucknow. I’ve been sitting behind this counter for quite a while now and I’ve seen the kids grow up and start buying their own groceries.