India-A Great Shopping Bazaar
From Designer Brands to Traditional Crafts

From bustling city markets to traditional bazaars tucked in narrow, crowded lanes, India offers a wide and exotic array of shopping options. It has, over the centuries, kept its arts and crafts alive-ivory, brass, silver copper, gold, jewellery, silks and brocades, leather goods, carpets, excellent wood work items, precious and semiprecious stones, blue pottery and unending list of great buys.

There is now another face of shopping unveiling itself-branded goods. Almost every brand has made its presence in India from the Lacostes, Benettons, Rayban and Gucci, Swatch, Elizabeth Arden-at prices that would make manufactures blush-well almost!

Shopping in India can now be anyway you like- air conditioned and fixed price, or street market and lots of hard bargaining. If you think long enough, there is probably something that is not available in one of the city’s thousands or shops and stalls, but it is hard to imagine what that would be. You want to buy a wedding sari? Or a pair of stone-washed jeans? Benetton sweat shirts cheaper than in Europe? Bags that are exported to New York stores? Or do you hanker for authentic German sausages? Or Christmas pudding from London?

India is, for the first time, seeing the setting up of department stores and shopping malls in major cities such as Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Chennai. Hyderabad’s recent announcement of its shopping festival is a step in the direction of promoting India as a great shopping destination beyond handicrafts. The fest, now an annual event, is organized on an international scale such as the Dubai, Singapore and Malaysia festivals.

All over India are the government emporiums, Cottage Industries, reasonably well stocked with a cross section of handicrafts and clothes, at a fixed price. Good, but pricey, antique shops can be found all over, but one has to watch out for imitations.

Silver is very good buy in India, but Bargain hard.. Other good silver buys are napkin rings, picture frames in old silver (beautiful, but pricey) and boxes, lovely presents if you can ever bear to give them away. Always check the price per gram for silver, remember there is a different price for old silver, and do compare prices in a few shops before buying.

For the book lover, there are several excellent bookshops and street stalls. India offers great bargains in the latest fiction and also textbooks.