CHENNAI: A little more than a year ago, Michael Crichton, Robert Ludlum, Jeffrey Archer, Dan Brown were names that Gopalan and Nageswaran (names changed) couldn’t care less about. Now, pandemic-induced salary cut and restriction in transport services have forced them to become sellers of old and used books. They now have sufficient knowledge about the bestselling paperbacks.
One is still a physical education teacher at a private school; the other a cab driver. While they were not acquainted with each other previously, both have set up mobile book stalls in their cars along busy Lake View Road in Madipakkam.
“My grandfather used to sell old books in the Moore market which was destroyed in a fire in1985. After the initial months of lockdown when cab services were allowed, there was no brisk business and the few who came about were also Covid patients. Since I had a little knowledge about this, I took it up,” says 50-year-old Nageshwaran. Every morning, he loads his cab with books from his house in Perumbakkam and then stations outside an apartment complex in Mambakkam. In the evenings, he sets shop along the Madipakkam lake.
Ganesan’s salary as a physical education teacher at a private school was cut due to the pandemic, forcing him to take up the side job. “My elder sister’s family is in the business. When I explained my situation, they suggested I take this up. Since I have my own car, I used it as a stall instead of opting for a rented stall or store,” says the 40-year-old.
Ganesan, who has been a PET for16 years, never foresaw this situation. “In the initial days, I was more embarrassed about selling books in a public place. Over time, it has come down. Now, even if management restores salary, I think I will try and continue this mobile stall.”
