Harsh Dry Fruit Store

Lahori Gate is a busy spot and our place, Harsh Dry Fruit Store, is right in the middle of Shri Banke Bihari Market at 553/554. It’s an old market with very narrow lanes. We have bags of walnuts and raisins stacked up against the walls. My uncle and I run the place together. We spend a lot of time just sorting through the nuts to make sure they are okay. The dust from the sacks gets into your clothes and hair by the end of the day. We have a small light bulb hanging from the ceiling that flickers if the wind is too strong. It’s not a fancy shop with glass displays. We just keep everything in big jars and sacks. People come here from all over when it’s time for a festival. Sometimes the crowd is so thick you can’t even see the floor. We just keep our heads down and fill the bags. We drink tea from a nearby stall and talk to the other shop owners about the prices. The building is quite old and the stairs to the storage room are very steep. I have to be careful when I’m carrying heavy boxes up there. It’s a lot of physical work, but it’s what we’ve always done. We don't have a phone that rings much, people just walk in. It’s how business happens here in Lahori Gate and we are used to it.