Push Cart

As the name suggests, Push Carts are a small cart on four wheels, catering to peoples need varying from Vegetables, Utensils, Jewelry and Food. It is a basic wooden or metal structure with four wheels attached to it and with or without a top cover.

These carts are customized in local workshops to fit their need.

Though multiple vendors use pushcarts, they are the most widely used by food vendors. These food carts are called Thalluvandi / Kai Yendhi Bhavan / Thattukadai in Tamilnadu. Each region has their own colloquial name for these carts.

Due to the affordability of the food, the majority of the clientele for these carts are Daily Labourers, Workers from low-income sectors and Bachelors. However, spotting clients in their expensive cars frequenting these shops is not unusual.

These carts are modern-day Annalakshmis serving millions of people every day. These shops are usually run by the entire family, with everyone pitching in their labour to run the carts successfully. The recent lockdowns have harmed the livelihood of these pushcart vendors. Yet, they seem to be slowly reviving and back on their food.

Photography @raksha_raman