Swallowing the bitterness of his daily life, Subhani traverses the streets of Vizag on his two-wheeler selling sweets like soan papidi and putharekulu.
‘In order to support my younger brother and two sisters, five years ago I stopped studying and went to work in a hotel. I did odd jobs and till last year also went long distances on my cycle. Getting married changed things; to increase my meagre income and owing to my health problems I started selling soan papdi. I had previously learnt how to make soan papdi from a Rajasthani person in Hyderabad. I started making soan papdi, which I sell today on my two-wheeler, a Luna which was gifted by my in-laws.
If I work hard we get money, and if I don’t, then my family goes hungry.
My parents live in Nakkapalli, my native village, with my siblings. They work as daily wage labourers; we don’t have any assets, so we have nothing to fall back upon. I shifted to Vizag ten years ago for better prospects and got married in 2012. I live with my wife and nineteen-month son in Maddilapalem.
It’s a tough life, difficult at every step. I work at a hotel in the mornings, come home and prepare soan papdi. We make approximately two kilograms, and sell it the same day. I earn around Rs. 600/- every day. At times, the sales finish early, and I get to come home by evening. But some days, I have to stay out till 10 PM to sell sweets. Though we make a fresh batch of sweets everyday, selling is still tough as people are worried about the quality they’d get from a seller like me. The business isn’t great, but it’s all that I know. If I work hard we get money, and if I don’t then my family goes hungry.
I lack the financial support to expand, but even if I do get money, my first goal will be to get my sisters married and look after my wife and son. For me, my family comes first.’[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
