Mohamed Farooq

Turmeric, kumkum, agarbattis, wick are some of the items used in pooja. And then there are the other items like coconut, adike (betel nut), dhoop, Kapur (camphor)… My name is Mohammed Farooq. I am a Muslim man and I run a Hindu pooja store.

My grandfather opened this store in 1969 to sell coconuts and betel leaves. It then came to my father and from 1987, I have been working here too. In the last few months, my son has also joined me. Today, we sell everything needed for poojas. Sometimes people just come in and tell me the name of the pooja, and I know what to give them. We never close the shop. The doors are always open, even through Ramzan.

We have never had an issue because we are Muslims running this shop. In fact, some people have said that good things happen to them because they buy from our shop. There are people who spend Rs. 400 on autos to come and buy stuff for Rs. 5, saying they will not go anywhere else. Even within the family, most people are fine. My mother-in-law was upset and tried to convince me to run a paint shop or a rice shop, but I told her this is the work of my forefathers and this is what I will do. She finally got around to the idea.

I feel like God will bless me for being a good person. All religions are the same and all gods are one. I feel sad that not enough people think this way. Which religious book is asking us to hate others? Don’t they all have a single message?