Durga Pershad Mangal Sain

You can find us at 2228 in Kinari Bazar, right in the heart of Chandni Chowk. If you know that area, you know how crowded and loud it gets. Our shop is tucked away among all the other sellers, and we’ve been here longer than most of the people walking past our door. We mostly deal with the kind of things people need for weddings or big celebrations, like laces and borders. It’s a bit of a maze getting here, but that’s just how Chandni Chowk is. The space is small and we have stuff stacked up to the ceiling. Most days involve showing different patterns to people who have very specific ideas about what they want. It’s a lot of unrolling and rolling back up. My family has been doing this for a long time, and we don’t see much reason to change how we work. We drink a lot of tea while we talk to the customers. Sometimes it’s so busy you can barely move, and other times we just sit and watch the crowds go by. It’s a different kind of life compared to a modern office building. There’s a lot of history in these walls at 2228. We don’t bother with fancy displays; the items speak for themselves. If you need something for a special outfit, this is where we spend our lives making sure the right bits and pieces are available for everyone. We like it here.