Sunderlal Kishan Chand

Sunderlal Kishan Chand has been at 1206 Chandni Chowk for longer than I can remember. This part of Delhi is always moving, and our shop is right in the thick of it. If you stand outside our door, you’ll see thousands of people passing by every hour. It’s loud, it’s dusty, and it’s wonderful. Our shop is old, with high ceilings and shelves that reach all the way up to the top. We have to use a wooden ladder to get things down. We deal in various goods, and the inventory changes a bit depending on the season. We aren't one of those shiny new stores with glass fronts. Our doors are heavy and old, and the floorboards creak when you walk on them. We have a lot of regular customers who come in just to say hello or to have a glass of water while they catch their breath from the heat outside. We don’t have a website or anything like that; people just know where 1206 is. My grandfather used to sit in the same spot where I sit now, and I hope one day my son will sit here too. It’s more than just a business to us, it’s our life. We deal with the chaos of Chandni Chowk every day, the traffic jams and the noise, but we wouldn’t change it for anything.