Tanay Hastkala

Our shop is right in the Main Market of Goregaon West. We are located near Mahatma Gandhi Road, so it is a very busy area with people constantly walking past. The space is quite small, as is the case with most shops in this busy neighborhood. We have to be very clever about how we stack the items so that everything fits in the available room. Most of what we have is hastkala, or handmade goods, so there are a lot of textures and colors everywhere. The noise from the market is constant, with hawkers and traffic and people talking. It’s a very lively place to spend the day. We usually open up early to beat the main rush and get the floor swept. The shelves are made of old wood and they go all the way up to the ceiling. We have a small ladder we use to reach the stuff at the top. It can get quite hot in the summer months because the breeze doesn't always reach inside the shop. We keep a small fan near the counter to stay cool. Customers are mostly locals who are out doing their daily shopping. We know a lot of them by name. It’s a simple business and we don't try to make it more than it is. We just focus on the items we have and helping people find what they need. The market stays open late, but we generally try to wrap things up by eight or nine so we can go home. It is a long day but the environment keeps us going.