Vaibhav Sweets

We've been here at Vadgoensheri 56/9 for a good while now. Most mornings start pretty early, around 5 or 6, when the milk delivery comes in. It's quiet then, just the sound of the stove getting started and the big pots being moved around. I usually handle the counter while the guys in the back get the first batches of sweets ready. The floor always feels a bit sticky no matter how many times we wipe it down, that's just how it is when you're working with sugar all day. People from the neighborhood stop by on their way to work, sometimes just for a quick snack or to see what's fresh. We don't have fancy displays or anything, just the usual glass cases filled with whatever we made that morning. Sometimes we run out of the popular stuff by afternoon and have to scramble to make more. It gets crowded in the evenings when families come out. There is a lot of noise from the street outside, bikes honking and people talking, but inside it mostly smells like ghee and cardamom. We spend a lot of time just cleaning trays and packing boxes for people taking things home. It's a lot of standing on your feet, and my back usually hurts by the time we close up at night. But it's what we do. The regulars know us by name and we know who likes their stuff a bit more fried or extra sweet. It is just a regular shop doing regular things every day.