Ramu Chiravanchil

Carpenter

Off the arterial Karama road in one of the winding bylanes stands Red Palace Carpentry, a modest wood repair workshop with one master craftsman at the helm of affairs. Everyday, for the last 15 years, Chiravanchil, 48, has been walking into the shop at 8am and getting down to work.

“We sometimes get an order to make new furniture, but usually people come here to get old bedside tables, chairs, shelves, coffee tables, repaired. I view repairing as a challenge. A wobbly table, a few nails to be hammered in, a new extension, and you have a perfectly restored item of furniture back in your life,” says Chiravanchil.

The repair prices are not high — Dh50-Dh200 — but his degree of satisfaction at restoring an item to its former glory is sky high.

“People come in with crestfallen faces hoping I can work some magic on their old item. Many are sentimental about the item. To them, it is not just a piece of wood but a reservoir of memories. I feel happy restoring that furniture and putting the smile back on their faces. In India, our parents never threw away a single chair or shelf. We grew up with the same furniture for years,” says Chiravanchil.

Watch repairer