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  These days you can find Ishaque perched on a stool in front of shelves that teem with vintage brass—everything from the practical to the fanciful. Strike up a conversation and he’ll tell you about his daughter, an excellent student he’s hoping to send to college, or his own personal collection of antique brass locks (he’s got some 250 of them). Most things in the shop are priced by weight, and if you like your brass shiny, he’ll happily polish it up for you.

Photography by Shriti Banerjee