D. M. Saree

We’re tucked away on the fourth floor at No. 6/8 Vithoba Lane. If you know Kalbadevi Road, you know how busy it gets around here. It’s a bit of a climb up to the office, but it keeps us moving. D. M. Saree has been in this spot for some time now. The room is usually filled with stacks of sarees in all sorts of colors. We spend a lot of time unfolding and folding things back up to show people. It gets a bit dusty with all the fabric, but that’s normal for this kind of work. The light coming in through the windows isn't always the best, but we have enough lamps to see what we're doing. It’s a small space, so we have to be careful where we step so we don't trip over a bundle. The neighbors in the building are mostly doing similar things, so there’s always a lot of activity in the hallways. We don't have a receptionist or a waiting room. People just come in and we start looking at the stock. It’s a very hands-on job. Sometimes we stay late when a new shipment arrives from the weavers. We just grab some tea from the shop downstairs and keep going. It’s just us doing our thing in the middle of a very busy market area. We’ve been at it for years.