Raj Dairy

Raj Dairy is located on the Chinchwad Akurdi Chikhali Road, right in Shivam Market. We are in Building No 1, at Shop No 6. My day starts very early, usually while it is still dark outside, because that is when the milk containers arrive. I have to be here to move the heavy crates and get everything into the refrigerators before the sun comes up. By six in the morning, the first customers start arriving for their daily milk and curd. It’s a small shop and the walls are tiled so they are easier to wash down every day. The smell of fresh milk is always there, and the floor is usually a bit damp from the ice and cleaning. We have a simple counter and some large fridges that hum loudly all day. Shivam Market is a busy place once the other shops start opening up, but we are often the busiest in those early hours. People are usually in a rush to get home and make tea or breakfast, so there isn't much time for long chats. I keep a small notebook to mark down what the regulars take on credit until the end of the month. By the afternoon, things slow down and I get a chance to sit on a plastic crate and have some lunch. It’s a lot of lifting and moving things around, but it is a good way to earn a living here in Chinchwad.