Baba Loknath Rice Mill

Out here in Danan village, right near Kolaghat, things move at a certain pace. The mill has been part of the landscape for years. You can hear the engines thumping from down the road. It’s a simple setup at Baba Loknath Rice Mill. We take the paddy from the farmers around Purba Medinipur and get to work. The shed is big and keeps the rain off the bags, but when it’s monsoon season, the mud makes it hard for the carts to get in. We spend a lot of time just cleaning the floor and checking the hulls. My father worked in a mill too, so I learned by watching. We don't use any fancy computers to run things, just manual levers and a lot of hard work. Sometimes the belt on the main motor snaps and we spend half the day fixing it. It’s frustrating, but it’s part of the day. The smell of raw rice is always in the air here. Even when I go home, I can still smell it on my skin. We have a few dogs that hang around the gates for scraps. It’s a loud place, so we mostly talk by shouting or using hand signals. It’s not a glamorous life, but it keeps the village fed and provides jobs for the guys down the street. We keep the gates open as long as there is light outside.