Sermakani Emporium

The shop is located on the 3rd Main Road in Dharavi, specifically in the Domlur Layout area, at number 401. It is a busy spot. You can hear the bikes and the occasional cow outside almost all day long. Inside Sermakani Emporium, the air is thick with the smell of whatever we have in stock that week. Sometimes it is cloth, sometimes it is other things. The shelves go all the way up to the top, so we keep a rickety wooden ladder tucked away in the back. You have to be careful on the third step because it wobbles. We spend most mornings dusting off the displays because the road outside kicks up so much dirt. The floor is made of old tiles that have cracks in a few places. My nephew usually sits by the door on a plastic stool, watching the people go by. It is not like those big malls you see in the city. Here, you have to squeeze past the counters to get to the back. We have a small calendar hanging on the wall with pictures of gods, and every morning we light a bit of incense. The light from the front door doesn't reach the very back, so it stays a bit dark back there. It is just how it is. We know most of the neighbors by their first names and they know us. There is always someone dropping by to chat.