Jaish Pan Bhandar

Our little stall is at Khar 60. It’s not much to look at, just a wooden counter and some shelves for the jars of spices and supari. Jaish Pan Bhandar has been on this corner for a long time, and we’ve seen the neighborhood change quite a bit over the years. The street stays busy until very late at night, so we usually don’t close up until well past midnight. We spend a lot of time cleaning the betel leaves and getting the pastes ready. It’s a messy job sometimes, and our hands are usually stained by the end of the shift. We have a small radio that plays old songs while we work, which helps pass the time when things are slow in the afternoon. People from the nearby buildings stop by after their dinner to get a pan and chat for a minute. We don't have any fancy lights or big advertisements. Most people just find us because they live nearby or they've been coming here since they were kids. The wood of the counter is worn down where people lean on it. Sometimes we run out of fresh leaves if the delivery is late, and we just have to tell people to come back tomorrow. It’s a simple way to make a living, and we’re used to the heat and the noise of the traffic at Khar 60. We just keep doing what we do every single day without much complaint.