Raju Yadav’s bookstall is the only one of its kind, nestled on a busy street a few paces away from Gate No 1 of Takshila Colony in Andheri East. Sure, it is surrounded by large food, drink and hardware shops but while those boast of size, his stall looks towering thanks to the nearly 1,000 books stacked high inside. It is exactly the kind of cubicle he wants to be seated in for the rest of his life. 

Earlier, the 26-year-old had taken up work in the collections department of a bank after completing his bachelors in commerce, but didn’t find the gig as fulfilling as expected. “When I was in college, I used to read books often. After I finished college, I worked long hours at the bank job but what I really wanted to do was start my own business and what better way to do it than to convert my hobby of reading into a business?” Yadav learnt the ropes from his friends who were already running a bookshop near Sher-e-Punjab nearby, and started his stall, which he calls Mind Gym, in no time. “I realised that I would not only get to read books but also earn money from it and in the future, if the business went well, I could open a shop too,” adds Yadav.