Dhir General Store

Being right at Vishkarma Chowk in Ludhiana means there is never a moment of silence. The horns and the engines from the main road are always in the background. Our store is at A-01 and we have been watching the traffic go by for a long time. It is a busy spot, so we keep the front of the shop packed with things people might need in a hurry. We have a lot of winter wear tucked in the back during the colder months, along with the usual groceries. The floor is old cement and it has some cracks in it, but it holds up fine. I spend most of my day standing behind the counter, reaching for cigarette packs or bags of chips. My brother helps me with the heavy lifting when the oil tins arrive. We don’t use any fancy software for the billing, just a pen and paper and a calculator that has seen better days. The light inside is a bit dim because we only have two tube lights and one of them flickers if the voltage is low. We get a lot of laborers and truck drivers stopping by because of the Chowk location. It is a tiring job and the dust from the road gets into everything, but we keep the doors open from morning until late at night. It is just a regular shop trying to keep up with the busy street.