Four generations of this family has kept news relevant in Hosapete

Hosapete (Vijayanagara): Four generations of the Kudatini family in Hosapete have been into the newspaper distribution business. Nearly all the members of the Kudatini family are part of the family business, that also includes a bookstore ‘Sharada Bookstall’— a news-stand-cum-bookshop opened about 70 years ago.
Veeranna Kudatini started the business. Following Veeranna, his four sons Hanumantappa, Shivappa, Bhupateppa, and Venkatesh continued the profession. Now all four brothers, their sons, and grandsons, are involved in newspaper distribution. Women in the family are also part of running the business.
A routine work day for the Kudatini family members start at 3 am, and ends by 9 pm. They take turns in shift timings, to help run the newspaper distribution and bookstore business seamlessly. The usual work timings are divided into three shifts: 3 am to 9 am; 9 am to 4 pm and 4 pm to 9 pm. Having been a part of the news industry, the family has many memories of some of the milestone in the history of the country.
“It was November 1, 1984, a day after the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Scores of people gathered in front of our shop at 6 am to buy newspapers, to get details about the assassination. The rush was such, that the newspapers were distributed under police protection that day,” recalled a 60-year-old K Venkatesh, one of the brothers.
Venkatesh also recalled how the family, later on that day, had to distribute newspapers from Bengaluru, at the residence in Hosapete. “The vehicle carrying newspapers from Bengaluru used to reach by 8 am. That day, it didn’t arrive even after 10 am. The crowd was building up in front of the shop, and we came to know that the vehicle had arrived on the outskirts of the city, around 11 am. We rushed to the spot and diverted it to our residence, and took delivery. There was so much rush at our residence, we were forced to distribute the newspapers under police protection,” he recalled.