Umer Provisional Store

Living and working in Nawa Kadal means you get to know everyone eventually. Our shop is right by the Eidgah area, and it stays pretty steady throughout the day. I usually start by checking what we ran out of the night before. Usually, it’s the tea or the spices that go fastest. Srinagar gets cold, so people are always coming in for something warm or supplies to keep their kitchens running when the weather turns bad. The shop isn't very large, so we have to stack things all the way to the ceiling sometimes. It can be a bit of a mess when a big delivery comes in and we have boxes all over the floor. I try to keep things organized, but when it’s busy, you just grab what the customer wants and keep going. We have been sitting here for years, watching the street change while we sell the same basic flour and salt. It’s not a fancy supermarket, just a place where you can get your daily needs without much fuss. Sometimes the electricity goes out and we have to use candles, but the neighbors still come by to chat and pick up their groceries. It’s a lot of work standing on your feet all day, but seeing the same people every morning makes it okay. We just do our best to keep the shelves full of the things people in this part of town actually use.