Foka Fisheries

If you ever come down to Versova in Andheri West, you know the smell of the sea is everywhere. We’re located at Shiv Shakti House, right in Buddha Gali No-2. It’s a busy little stretch of road. Foka Fisheries is basically a small team of us working with what the boats bring in. The mornings start way before the sun is up, usually around four or five, when the first catches start arriving. It’s wet work, and our boots are almost always soaked by noon. Shiv Shakti House is an older building, and our space is pretty simple—just some heavy-duty tables, plenty of ice crates, and a floor that we’re constantly hosing down. We don’t have a fancy showroom or anything like that. People just know where we are. The Gali gets crowded with tempos and people looking for the best pick of the day. It’s loud, and there’s a lot of haggling going on, but that’s just the nature of the fish business. Sometimes the electricity flickers, which is a worry because of the cold storage, but we manage. We’ve been in this spot for a good while, and most of the guys working here have been with us since the start. We just focus on getting the fish sorted and sent out to the markets or the restaurants that need them. It’s a lot of heavy lifting and long hours, but we like being near the water. There is always a lot of noise from the neighboring stalls too.