Shalimar General Store

Shalimar General Store in Alam Ganj is just a small place. We’ve been here in Gulzarbagh for a long time now. Most mornings start with opening the metal shutters and sweeping the front step. Patna can be quite dusty, so cleaning is a never-ending job. We keep things that people need every day. You can find bags of rice, different kinds of dals, and cooking oil on the lower shelves. The higher shelves have smaller items like toothbrushes, matchboxes, and tea leaves. It’s not a fancy supermarket where everything is under bright lights. It is just a neighborhood shop. Sometimes the power goes out and we have to use a small rechargeable lamp to see the labels. Customers come in throughout the day, usually neighbors we have known for years. They ask for a kilo of sugar or maybe some biscuits for their kids. We talk about the weather or how the traffic is getting worse in Alam Ganj lately. It gets busy in the evenings when people are coming home from work and realize they forgot something for dinner. We write things down in a ledger if someone is a regular customer. The shelves are a bit crowded and sometimes it takes a minute to find the exact brand of soap someone wants. It is a simple way to make a living and pay the bills. We just try to keep the staples in stock so nobody has to go too far for basic things.