Venkateswara Kirana Gen Store

Down in Sulthan Poor, at number 1-90, that is where we have our little store. It’s been here in Patancheru for quite some time now. We call it Venkateswara Kirana Gen Store because that’s the name we liked. We sell basic things like dal, rice, sugar, and the small packets of biscuits the kids like to buy. Usually, the mornings are quiet, mostly just women coming in for milk or something they forgot for breakfast. Then it picks up again in the evening when people are coming home from work. We have big sacks of grain sitting on the floor and rows of glass jars with different spices and sweets. It’s a bit dusty because of the road right outside, but we try to keep the counters wiped down as much as possible. Sometimes the electricity goes out and we have to use the torch to find things for the customers in the back. We know almost everyone who walks through the door by their name. It’s not just a shop, it’s where people stop to talk for a minute about the weather or the local news from the village. I spend a lot of time weighing out things on the scale and tying up plastic bags with string. We don't have a computer or anything, just a notebook where I write down what we need to buy from the big market next time I go. It’s a simple way to spend the day.