Khabiya Provision Store

This place is on Bahu Patil Road in Vile Parle East. Number 45. It’s a busy area and the noise from the street never really stops. We open up before the sun is fully up because people need their bread and eggs. The floor gets dirty quick with all the feet coming in, so someone is always sweeping. We have bags of flour stacked against the wall. Sometimes the stack gets too high and leans a bit. We sell a lot of small things, like matches and single biscuits. It takes a long time to count everything at night. We use a wooden counter that has been here since the start. It's got scratches all over it. The lights flicker if the rain is too heavy outside. Vile Parle East is a crowded place to have a store but we like the energy. We know most of the kids who come in after school for candy. They are always loud. We have to tell them to wait their turn. The back room is where we keep the extra stock. It’s dark back there and smells like spices and laundry soap. We don't use a computer. Everything is done by hand. It’s slower that way but we’re used to it. We just try to keep enough of the basics so nobody leaves empty-handed. It is a lot of standing all day long but it's okay.