Dhamender Pan Bhandar

Our shop is located right inside the Ghaziabad District Court Compound, at Raj Nagar C/30. It’s a very busy spot. All day long, there are lawyers in black coats, people waiting for their cases, and clerks running around with stacks of files. We’re right in the middle of all that noise. I spend most of my day sitting behind the small counter, prepping the betel leaves and getting the jars ready. We don’t have much room at all, just enough for me to sit and for the jars of kattha, lime, and various fillings. It gets quite loud with everyone talking and the fans whirring overhead. People come to us when they need a quick break from the stress of the courtrooms. We don’t do any fancy marketing or anything. We don’t even have a big sign. People just know where we are. I’ve been doing this for a long time, so my hands move on their own when I’m making a pan. We also keep a few cigarettes and some matchboxes because people often ask for them. The floor is concrete and can get a bit messy with all the foot traffic, so we try to splash some water and sweep it out when things quiet down. It’s a rough and tumble kind of place, but it’s our corner of the world. We stay open as long as the court is busy.