Talreja Ritu Girdharilal

We are right here in the Wadi area, very close to the Jain Temple. If you are walking towards the temple, you can't really miss our place. It is a family-run business and we have been in this exact spot for more years than I can really count. The shop is small and it sometimes gets a bit crowded when the temple has a lot of visitors on the special days. We mostly sell everyday items that people living in the neighborhood need for their homes. It isn't anything fancy, just some shelves filled with the usual stuff like grains, soaps, and other bits and pieces. I spend a lot of my day sitting behind the old counter talking to the neighbors who stop in to buy something. We know almost everyone who walks through that door, and we usually ask them about their families or how their work is going. It is a slow kind of life here compared to what you see in the big cities. The walls could probably use a fresh coat of paint and the ceiling fan makes a clicking noise, but it feels like home to us. We don't have a big sign or any bright flashing lights, just the open door and a few crates sitting outside on the path. On festival days, it gets very busy and we all have to jump in to help out. It is a lot of standing, but it keeps us going.