Kalicharan General Store

Kalicharan General Store is located in Dharampal Market right on the Main Road in Sarnath, Varanasi. This area gets a lot of visitors because of the historical sites but our shop is really meant for the people who live and work here every day. We carry a bit of everything from kitchen supplies to small household items. The market is a very lively place and there is always someone shouting or a rickshaw bell ringing outside our door. We’ve been in this same spot for many years now and the shop has seen a lot of things change. It isn't a very big space so things are tucked into every corner. We don't have any polished floors or bright lights. It’s just a regular store with a concrete floor and a few basic tube lights. My brothers and I take turns managing the counter. We don’t have a formal way of doing things. We just try to be helpful to the neighbors. Sometimes the power goes out in the afternoon and we just sit outside on the steps until it comes back. It is just the way things are in Varanasi. We don't do any marketing or advertisements because everyone in Sarnath already knows where we are. We close for a little bit in the afternoon when it gets too hot and then we stay open until quite late at night. It is a steady way to live and we are used to the routine.