Maatu Shree Masala

I started the shop near the Khalasa private bus stop in Ahore. It gets quite dusty here with the buses coming and going all day. My father used to tell me that spices are the heart of the kitchen, and that's how we ended up with Maatu Shree Masala. We spend a lot of time cleaning the seeds and grinding things down. Sometimes the smell of red chilies makes everyone in the shop sneeze, but you get used to it after a few years. It’s just me and a couple of helpers working here on Sh-16. We don't have a fancy office or anything like that. Just some heavy stone grinders and bags of raw ingredients stacked up against the walls. People from the village come by when they are waiting for their bus. They usually want something fresh for their dinner. We try to keep things simple. Sometimes the electricity goes out and we have to wait around, drinking tea until the power comes back on. It is a slow life but it keeps us busy. The floor is always covered in a bit of yellow powder from the turmeric. We sweep it up every evening before locking the heavy metal shutters. It’s not a big factory, just a local spot where we do our work and talk to the neighbors. Most days are the same, grinding and packing. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else, even with the dust.