Akash Bhujiawala

Out here in Village Adardih, near Post Bamia, things move a bit slower than in the big cities. This is where Akash Bhujiawala is based, and it is mostly a family affair with Kishir Kumar and his father Santosh Kumar involved in the day-to-day work. We spend a lot of our time in the kitchen area dealing with the big pans and the smell of spices. Making bhujia is something that takes a lot of patience because you have to get the fry just right so it isn't too oily. The village kids often hang around when they smell the snacks being made. We do not have a big fancy storefront or anything like that. It is just us working out of our space here, packing things up to send out. The heat from the stoves can be a lot during the summer months, but you get used to the sweat after a few years. We buy our ingredients from the local markets and try to keep everything simple. Sometimes the power goes out in the village and we have to wait it out, but that is just life in this part of the country. We know most of our customers by name since they have been buying from us for a long time. It is a modest way to make a living, but it keeps us busy from sunrise until the evening. We aren't trying to do anything too complicated, just making snacks the way we always have for the community.