Aashirwad Hotel

Being in a basement in Dahisar East is a bit different from your average shop. You don't get much natural light down here at Aashirwad Hotel, but it stays a little cooler when the sun is beating down outside. Basement 7 has been our spot for many years now. People walking by on the street sometimes miss the stairs, so we put a small board out on the pavement. It’s a very humble setup. We’ve got some old wooden chairs and tables that have seen better days, but they still hold up fine. The sink in the back makes a weird knocking noise sometimes, but it still works well enough. We start prepping the vegetables around eight in the morning. Dahisar is a busy area, so there’s always someone coming in and out. We try our best to keep things clean, but with all the dust from the road, it’s a constant battle with the broom. We don’t spend any money on fancy ads or social media. Most people just know us from word of mouth or passing by. The tea we make is quite strong, just the way the local auto drivers like it when they take a break. Sometimes we run out of rice by two in the afternoon if the lunch rush is bigger than we expected. It happens, and there's not much we can do. We just tell people we’re sorry and offer them whatever else is left in the pots. It’s just a regular life running a small hotel in the basement.