When life gets tough, most people are told to slow down. Rest. Step back. Let others take over.

But some people simply don’t know how to stop showing up for themselves.



At 70, Deepali Ghosh from West Bengal is one of them.



While many her age move into old-age homes or depend on others to get through the day, Deepali chose a harder road. And somehow, a braver one too. A recent video of her quietly running her tiny rice hotel in Howrah has now touched thousands of hearts online.



For nearly 30 years, Deepali has been running a small eatery at Haroganj Market in Salkia, near Style Baazar. The space is humble. It’s not just her workplace - it’s also her home. After her husband passed away, she didn’t shut shop or give up. She stayed back. Took charge. And kept going, all on her own.



She opens shop every day

Every single day, she does everything herself. Buys the groceries. Cooks the meals. Serves customers. Washes the dishes. Cleans the floor. There’s no staff. No backup. Just her and her routine.



But things haven’t been easy.

After the lockdown, business slowed down badly. What once brought in regular customers now barely sees four or five people a day. The shop itself shows years of struggle - blackened walls from smoke, old utensils that have seen better days, and a roof that leaks when it rains. At night, she rests on a worn piece of plywood in one corner of the same room where she works all day.



Her health isn’t the best either. Her hearing is weak. Her body gets tired faster now. And she doesn’t have family around to lean on. Still, she hasn’t chosen an old-age home. She hasn’t asked for charity. She just wants to earn her way, as long as she can stand on her feet.



The video was shared by Instagram user Aradhana Chatterjee, who stumbled upon Deepali’s story and felt something needed to change. In her post, she wrote about wanting to fix up the tiny shop - not to make it fancy, but to make it livable. A place where Deepali can work and rest with a little more comfort, and hopefully attract enough customers to get by.





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A post shared by Aradhana Chatterjee (@storiesbyaradhana)