They sit all over the house. The first to arrive get the chairs, others sit on the floor, and the rest line up outside. Begum charges the equivalent of six cents per minute, a fee townspeople are happy to pay. Before she got her phone, the only way to get a message to someone in another town or city was to walk, hire a rickshaw, or take a bus and go there in person. Calling overseas meant traveling to the city and waiting, often for days, for a pay phone.
Begum says having a telephone is amazing.
Since having the phone, I feel really good. It's helping a lot of people, not just me. People can call friends and relatives during emergencies. They say I'm providing a valuable service. Everyone is happy with me.