Gujarat: 'Bhayanak' tea stall near crematorium seeks to bury ghosts of fear

A crematorium is always a place filled with quietude and sordid solitude. Hence, it could be a place to land with a couple of books. But, opening a tea stall is a ghastly challenge even to the most fearless.

A 35-year-old man, Anil Bajrange, decided to brew tea at his small stall a step away from the crematorium. It's name: Bhayanak tea stall. Incidentally, the sales at the only three-month-old tea stall is also swelling. You can find chudail chai, bhoot coffee, virana dhoodh, ashti khari and kankal biscuits at the miniscule stall.

There are also other things on offer, and every name is associated with cremation, death or ghosts. Although he assures that the ingredients are worthy of human consumption and not for ghosts.

"I used to come here to read peacefully. I read a lot of spiritual books and one day I thought this could be the ideal place for a tea stall. This place is close to the crematorium and the river, and attracts a lot of people," said Bajrange, a class 10 drop out.

"Initially, I used to be ridiculed. But interestingly, that worked in my favour. It used to be curiosity that brought me the first customers. When I opened the shop, people would read its name and laugh. Those who came to the crematorium also ended up with a smile on their face," said Bajrange.

He said people then began approaching him to know why he named his shop such. "They would ask me about the name and would laugh over the menu. But it was a conversation starter and as with all conversations it often was conducted over tea," said Bajrange.

He said another reason for opening such a shop was that he felt there was nothing special about the tea that was being sold in the area "I thought there was a market for 'special' tea," said Bajrange. He, however, could not tell us what was so special about his tea. It should be noted that all the items on this menu start with the word special.