Hasmukh Hardware

If you walk past the Sai Baba temple in Dahisar East, you’ll find us tucked into Shop Number 2 at Krishna Kunj Chawl. It is a tight squeeze in here because we have shelves packed all the way to the ceiling with nails, hammers, pipes, and all sorts of bits. My brother usually handles the customers while I try to find where we put that specific sized bolt someone asked for three minutes ago. It gets very crowded in the evenings when everyone is coming home from work and realizes they need a new light bulb or a tap washer. The chawl is always lively, with kids running around and the smell of cooking from the neighbors' windows drifting in. We don't have much room for fancy displays, so things are just piled where they fit. Sometimes the rain leaks a little near the front door during the monsoon, so we have to move the bags of cement back a few feet. It is a bit of a struggle keeping everything organized in such a small space, but we have a system that mostly works even if it looks like a mess to anyone else. We keep a small photo of our parents near the cash box for good luck. It is honest work, and we are glad to be part of this little corner of Mumbai where everyone looks out for each other and stops by just to say hello.