Zubair book stall, a one-stop shop for all books

Hanamkonda: Zubair store, a one-stop assortment of books that once a dabba dukan (tin roof stall) before it grew into gigantic proportions is a messiah of the poor students in the region for over a three-and-half decade. 

It’s no overstatement to say that the store, which sells predominantly second-hand books over and above the newer ones, has become a never miss landmark for the students across Warangal, Karimnagar and Khammam erstwhile districts.

Anyone stepping into the cellar of the not-yet-finished building of the Zubair bookstall, a stone’s throw from Hanamkonda chowrastha, is in for a musty smell of rusty racks stacked with a rich collection of old and new books that instantly greet them.

At any given point of time, the store is packed to brim with hordes of students patiently waiting for their choice of textbooks, guides, test papers, books related to competitive examinations and what not. 

The range of books from KG to PG, including medicine, engineering and other streams, available in this iconic store is something astonishing. Thousands of books are seen in mounds on the floor due to non-availability of space.

Taking a cue from the footpath book vendors in Kothi (Hyderabad), Md Zubair along with his elder brother Moin started a second-hand bookstore in a dabba (tin roof stall) somewhere in 1980. Since then, the stall has become a care of address for those wanting to buy or get rid of old books. The mode of business is pretty simple. 

The store purchases old books at half price and sells at three quarters of the book price. Although there are more than 20 workers to assist him in the shop, Md Zubair, sporting a beard, likes to mingle with them as a worker. Indeed, Zubair is a courageous man like the very meaning of his Arabic name. The biggest challenge he faced in his life was in 2015, when thousands of books in his store were reduced to ashes in a fire mishap.

“What I lost in the fire mishap is not my money but a whole lot of precious books that are hard to come by again. However, by God’s grace, the support poured in from all quarters. Now, my store is back at its best to serve the needy,” Zubair told The Hans India, pointing to the piled-up books in the first floor of his store.

JVS Akhil Yadav, pursuing degree in the SDLCE, distance mode in Kakatiya University, said: “Every year, I purchase old textbooks and test papers in Zubair’s store, by paying 75 per cent of the book cost. After exams, I return them to the store and get 50 per cent of the book cost.

Virtually, I am spending just 25 per cent of the book cost.” The store never disappoints you. Even if a book is not available, the store will inform the needy whenever they get it, he added.