Asia Carvings

Living and working in Saharanpur means you’re always around the smell of wood and the sound of tools. Our place, Asia Carvings, is tucked into Lane Number 3, right near Indira Chowk. It’s one of those parts of town where everyone seems to know everyone else’s business. We’ve been at this for a long time. The workshop gets pretty dusty by noon, and there’s always a pile of shavings on the floor that needs sweeping. It’s not a corporate office with air conditioning and quiet hallways. It’s loud and it’s messy, but that’s how work gets done. Most of the guys here have been working with their hands since they were teenagers. We don’t have a big fancy sign out front, just the usual one that’s seen a bit of weather. When the sun hits Indira Chowk in the afternoon, the whole street slows down for a bit. We usually take a break then for some tea. People come by to ask about different designs or just to see what we are currently hacking away at. Saharanpur is famous for this kind of work, so there’s a lot of pressure to do things right, even if we don’t talk about it much. We just keep our heads down and get through the orders. It’s a simple life here in the lane, surrounded by wood and tools and the same faces every day.