Ammanuhullah Store

This shop is situated in Sekkadi Bazzar along the Trichy Main Road here in Melur. It is a small space but we pack it full of things. Sometimes I think I have put too many items on the shelves because it is hard to reach the stuff at the very top without a stool. We sell mostly daily goods that families need. You will find us near the other shops, but we try to keep our own rhythm. The sun hits the front of the store quite hard in the afternoons, so I usually hang a bit of cloth to keep the interior cool. It is not a polished place. The jars on the counter are mismatched and the sign outside has faded a bit over the years. I don't mind it much because the customers are mostly friends and neighbors who don't care about how the place looks as long as I have what they need. We talk about the weather or the price of goods while I weigh things out. Life in Madurai moves at its own pace, and here in Melur, we just follow along. I open early before the sun gets too high and stay until the streetlights come on. It is just a regular way to make a living and serve the people who live around the bazaar area. We don't try to be anything more than a local corner store. Sometimes the rain comes down really hard. I just use a bucket and keep going. That is how it is for us today.