Chaurasia Paan Shop

Our shop is 488/G on the Main Road in Brs Nagar. We are located right by the Allahbad Bank, so there are always people walking past the front. It is a tiny stall, barely enough room for two people to stand inside at the same time. We spend most of the day preparing the betel leaves and cutting up the nuts. It is a lot of hand work and my fingers are usually stained dark by the time the shift ends. We stay open pretty late because that is when most people want a paan after they finish their dinner. The traffic on the main road never really stops, so it is always noisy with the sound of horns. We have a small radio that we keep on for a bit of music while we work. Sometimes the customers stand around the counter and talk for a long time about the news. We don't mind it, it makes the long day go by faster. We go through a lot of ice and water to keep the leaves from drying out. If the heat gets too much, they wilt very fast and we have to throw them away. We have had this spot for many years now. The bank staff comes over during their afternoon breaks sometimes. We don't have a menu or anything like that. People just tell us how they like it, maybe with more lime or less sweet.