Agarwal Store

You’ll find our little store tucked away behind Mohanlal S Mittiawala in the Kalbadevi area. It’s at number 7, Asatmangal in Haripura. If you know Mumbai, you know how crowded and narrow these lanes can get. It’s a busy, cramped spot, but it’s got a lot of history. We’ve been running this store for a long time now. It’s a family thing. My grandfather started it, then my dad, and now me and my brothers are here every day. We sell a bit of everything, mostly stuff that local residents and other shops need. The space is small, so we have things stacked all the way to the ceiling. You have to be careful not to knock anything over when you walk in. It’s always loud outside with the handcarts and the people rushing by. We don't have a website or any of that new stuff; we just rely on people knowing we’re here. Sometimes it gets so busy we can barely hear ourselves think, especially during the festival seasons. We have a lot of regulars who have been coming to us for decades. They stop by to chat as much as they do to buy things. It’s a tight-knit community in Kalbadevi. We open early and stay open until the last customer leaves. It’s not an easy life, but it’s our life. We just keep the shelves stocked and the doors open for whoever comes by.