Face in the crowd

Come June and his shop resembles a beehive in spring. Harried parents - some nervous, some angry and even irritated - all spill out of hi...

Come June and his shop resembles a beehive in spring. Harried parents 8211; some nervous, some angry and even irritated 8211; all spill out of his 10-feet-by-four-feet room. At this time of the year, Madhukar Shendge of Shendge Tailors is much in demand and at the moment fobbing off demands, queries and complaints. It8217;s amazing how he keeps his cool despite being surrounded by irate parents. 8220;Oh I am so used to it. I joined this business 30 years ago and now it8217;s become my second nature,8221; says the master tailor.

Way back in 1946, Shendge8217;s father took on the contract to tailor the uniforms of the St Mary8217;s School. 8220;At that time there were a mere 30 to 40 students in the school and it was run by nuns.8221; Slowly as the number of students grew, so did Shendge8217;s work. Today he makes about 2,000 uniforms each year. For which he begins preparations in March. 8220;I go to Crawford Market in Mumbai and purchase about 1,600 metres of fabric, which get delivered to my door.8221;

Shendge stresses more on the material because that is what makes his uniform stand apart. 8220;The material is one of the reasons why I have so many parents at my door. The child will outgrow my uniform but never will it tear,8221; he guarantees, and materials that support his promise are the S Kumar8217;s terrycloth fabric along with polyester thread. Made out of these, Shendge8217;s uniforms are ready to take on the rough and tumble of school life.

Shendge has four people working for him, who do the stitching exclusively. 8220;I do the cutting because that has to be right. The uniform must have the right cut so that it does not look like a sack. The girls must look smart when they wear it.8221;

In the 50 years that the two generations have been in business, they have made about one lakh uniforms. The practice has made him so perfect that all he needs to do is see the child. 8220;One look at the student and I can cut the uniform.8221;

But of course it is not easy to satisfy everybody. And so even if uniforms are custom-made, there still are hassles at the end of the day. 8220;Sounds ironic, but it is the wealthy people who always crib about the rates while the middle-class parents are most accommodating. So to end all hassles this year, I have got the rates fixed by the principal of the school,8221; he explains.

Shendge remembers the time when the uniforms were made in cotton as specified by the school. 8220;There was this gentleman from the army who ordered a set for his daughter. When he came to collect it, he was livid. He insisted that the uniform be made in terrycloth or else he would not take it. My problem was how could I supply terrycloth uniforms when he had paid the rate for cotton ones? I went to the principal and it was on her intervention that he paid up.8221;

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But these are mere incidents that go with the nature of the business. When Shendge looks back, all he can feel is pride. 8220;I am proud to have served the school for so many years. In fact when the principal suggested that I retire, I told her that my son would take over. He is already involved in the business and is ready to step into my shoes.8221;

And then again, it will be a classic case of history repeating itself!