Indian food stand offers late meal for working women : NPR
Far-Flung Postcards is a weekly series in which NPR’s international team shares moments from their lives and work around the world.
In the town of Marikavalasa, in the eastern Indian coastal state of Andhra Pradesh, I spent an afternoon interviewing women who work on the main street. Patterns emerged: women, dressed in neat saris, sat in front of tidy stalls made of reclaimed plywood and supported by a few bricks.
The women agreed to discuss, to be interviewed, but they apologized profusely. There was a business to do, an eggplant to sell, colorful bracelets, a devotional lamp.
Many of these women were in debt to their neighbors to pay for medical care and school fees. They patiently explained that they had to repay their dues to remain in good standing in their community.
But as night fell, the smell of pan-fried flatbread wafted across the road, and some of these women allowed themselves a small luxury: an evening snack at a well-lit stand selling rolls. tiffins — a traditional Indian lunch box, usually consisting of flatbread, rice, vegetables in a spicy sauce and a pickle. It was a time for these hardworking women to enjoy a treat, joke and relax before returning to work.
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