H. K. Gems

We’ve been at Ganapati Chambers for a while now. It’s right across from the Hawamahal, which makes it easy for people to find us on the first floor. Working with stones and gems is what we do every day. It's dusty work sometimes but the end results are always nice to see. We spend most of our mornings sorting through things and meeting people who drop by the shop. It’s a busy spot in the city. The stairs up to the first floor are a bit narrow, but once you’re inside, we have plenty of light to look at the pieces. We don’t do much fancy stuff, just regular work with gems and making sure things are cut right. Some days are quieter than others, especially when the tourist crowd near the palace is thin. We’ve known the neighbors around here for years. It’s just us doing what we know how to do. Sometimes the power goes out, or the traffic outside gets too loud, but that’s just how it is living and working in this part of town. We keep things pretty simple. If you're walking past the old palace, you can usually see our sign. We've got a lot of small drawers filled with different bits and pieces. It takes a lot of patience to sit and look at stones all day, but we enjoy the quiet of the office once the door is shut. We usually have tea around four and talk about the day's work. It’s not a big operation, just a few of us here.