Kacang puteh man
Amirthaalangaram Moorthy, 54, is one of the few kacang puteh men still plying his trade in Singapore. His cart outside Peace Centre occupies just a tiny sliver of demarcated space at the entrance, for which he pays $600 a month to rent.
He offers around 20 types of flavoured nuts and murukku (Indian fried rice flour crisps), charging about $1.30 to $2 a portion. Upon ordering, he scoops the goodies from red-lidded plastic bottles into a cone made from recycled paper, deftly folds the top and hands it to his customer. A portable electric cooker holds steamed peanuts and chickpeas.
“Very very difficult” for the past two years
But for the past two years, Moorthy has struggled to make a living due to the Covid-19 pandemic. During the circuit breaker in 2020, he couldn’t operate his cart for two months.
When he was allowed to resume his business, Moorthy had a drastic drop in customers as most people in the surrounding office buildings were working from home. “Every day I open, but two years no business. Very very difficult,” the Chennai-born tells 8days.sg in his colloquial English.
Borrowed money from father
As he had to support himself and his family, Moorthy says he had to “borrow money from my father [to] makan”. His father sold off a house in India and lent the proceeds to his son. “He sell and send money here. No choice lah, if not how to makan?” sighs Moorthy. “No business, how? Makan, rent, everything. This place is $600. I take the money, makan.”
More at https://www.todayonline.com/8days/p...d-borrow-money-dad-tide-over-pandemic-1923421
