Vinod Pan Bhandar

If you walk through Subhash Nagar, you will probably see our small pan shop. It is not much to look at from the outside, just a counter with lots of glass jars and some hanging packets. I have been sitting here for years now, watching the neighborhood change around me. Most of the people who stop by are just neighbors going home from work or guys looking for a quick smoke and a bit of conversation. I spend a lot of time just cleaning the betel leaves and getting the lime paste ready. It is a bit of a messy job, and my fingers are usually stained, but that is just how it goes. We have the usual sweet pan and the stronger ones that the older men prefer. I keep a small radio in the corner so I can listen to the news or some old songs while I work. Sometimes the traffic in Subhash Nagar gets really loud and it is hard to hear anything, but you get used to it after a while. I don't really have a big staff, it is mostly just me or my brother sitting here through the day. We keep the jars filled with peppermint and different kinds of supari. It is a quiet way to make a living. People come, talk for five minutes about the weather or the local news, and then they head off. That is just how the day goes for us.