Abhijeet General Store

Abhijeet General Store sits right on the Bombay Goa Highway in Mangaon. It is a busy spot because we are directly opposite the bus stand. You can always hear the buses pulling in and out, and the conductors shouting for passengers. Being in Raigad district, the weather is often quite hot, so we keep the fans going all day inside the store. We have all the usual stuff people need when they are traveling or just living nearby. There are stacks of snacks, some basic medicine, soap, and stuff like that. It’s not a large place, just a simple room with a counter. We see a lot of different faces every day. Some people are just passing through on their way to the coast and they stop for a quick drink or some biscuits. Others are locals who come in to pick up things they forgot for dinner. The floor gets a bit dusty because of the highway traffic right outside, so we have to sweep it a few times a day. There isn't really a set schedule, things just happen as the buses come and go. Sometimes it's very quiet in the late afternoon when the sun is hitting the front of the shop. We just sit there and wait for the next person to walk in. It's a simple life running a store in a place like this, nothing too complicated. We enjoy the variety of people we meet. It is just the way things go around here.