In conversation with Nagendra Kumar

A Life Rooted in Malleswaram

My name is Nagendra Kumar, M.S. and I have been running this bookshop for thirty-five years. I was born in Malleswaram, so I've spent my whole life here. All my memories are connected to our house and this shop. My father owned this shop and when I was younger, I used to come here after school every day. There were many empty shops around at that time, and we had books by different authors covering various subjects. The business was important to our family.

When Everything Was Simpler

I have seen many changes since my father first opened the shop. So many people have come and gone, many hotels have opened, and cloth businesses have started everywhere. At that time, there were no strict government rules for business. Everything was simpler, and prices were very cheap. Day by day, prices have been going up, and there is hardly any support from the government. It has become difficult to keep a business like ours running.

The Screen Has Replaced the Page

The biggest problem we face is that I only have a physical store. Fewer readers are coming to the shop because all these books are available online now. Everybody is on their phone all the time, and people are reading less. Business is quite slow, but I am not the only one affected—every shop has been affected by these changes. Things became much harder after Covid, when people started depending even more on computers and phones.

The Disappearing Community

What troubles me most is how the community has changed. Everybody here does their own job, people come and go, but there is no personal connection with the neighbors anymore. The friendships that used to exist in this area seem to have disappeared.

Philosophy Readers: A Special Kind of Customer

However, I still appreciate the kind of customers we serve. A lot of older people visit this shop, and they are very respectful. We specialize in philosophy books, so people who aren't genuinely interested in philosophy and serious reading usually don't come here. These are people who value deep thinking and good books. This keeps our conversations good, even if fewer people come.

Carrying Forward My Father's Legacy

Despite all the challenges, this shop remains my work. It represents the business my father started, and I continue to serve those who still value books. Even in these difficult times, I try to keep this place running in a rapidly changing world.