Panchhi

We are located at 121 in the Samarth Sarthi Complex over in Athwa. It’s a busy building with a lot of different shops, so there’s always people coming and going. Our spot isn't the biggest, but we manage to fit everything we need inside. The mornings are usually the best time because it’s still cool before the Surat heat really starts to kick in. We arrive early to get things ready, usually before the other shops even open their shutters. There’s a specific smell to the place, like old paper and maybe a bit of the incense we burn in the corner every morning. The glass on our front window always seems to have fingerprints on it no matter how many times we wipe it down. We’ve got a couple of stools behind the counter, but we mostly stay on our feet. Sometimes the electricity goes out for a few minutes in the afternoon, and we just sit there in the dark waiting for it to come back on. It’s a good place to be if you like seeing people. You get the office workers, the families, and the students all passing through the complex. We don't have a grand story to tell. We just show up, do what needs to be done, and try to keep things organized. It’s a simple way to spend the day, and we’ve gotten pretty used to the rhythm of it.