Every Indian city has a huge multitude of small shops and small hotels that sell food at very cheap prices. The retail shops sell the smaller versions of every product -- the sachet packets at very odd hours -- even as late as 2am midnight or just around 4am in the morning. But for these shops life will be very bad for most of us, who travel a lot, and want to buy small quantities of such goods.
Strike a conversation with the guys who sell food at very cheap prices, and you hear a big story of hard work. They are all migrants --that is, mostly. For example, Mumbai has hundreds of them, who have migrated from many parts of Andhra Pradesh or Tamil Nadu or Kerala.
Similarly, Chennai has countless number of these shops that sell food items at a fraction of the cost, even in normal Udipi hotels.
These shops help in preserving communal harmony in society. Want to know how? They are really a great service to the nation, as they are taking care of the poor man's economy. Contrary to public perception, they are simple honest people, who have regular customers and also those who help you with small things -- like buying stamps from the Post office, sending an urgent courier and so on. They do this to develop relationships and life is simply beautiful when you share a joke or two with these people.
Members, do you agree? What is your experience?
