Business is dry during wet monsoons because Mumbaikars prefer to stay at home, enjoy hot pakodas and sip milk tea. Monsoon sale is the carrot these days businessmen use to get people to come to mall despite the rains to shop hard. Here are a few pictures I took on a wet Friday evening in a mall near my home.
Look this guy has himself done some it of shopping :)
Macy’s the quintessential shopping experience of New York City is all set to show up at a Shoppers Stop shelf near you. Everyone who has been to New York has visited Macys at Herald Square.
DNA India reports that Shoppers Stop may start stocking Macys products in their shops. I presume the day is not far when Mumbai will have its own Macys.
Now, I am sure this will bring one big smile on my sister’s face :)
Happy Shopping
Unless I’m greatly mistaken, these are the pipes that one uses to smoke ganja? I remember seeing these in little shops on my way home from school as well, and wondering what they were. Back then, I figured they were some special attachment to be used on taps. My curiosity continues unabated and I’m still wondering whether these aren’t illegal. If I’m right, they are…sort of.
I could be wrong, however. Does anybody know what these things are used for? I didn’t have the nerve to walk up to the shopkeeper and ask him. He didn’t seem perturbed by my taking photographs though.
It’s January and time for all of Mumbai’s iconic events. After the Mumbai Marathon and the Mumbai Festival comes the Strand Book sale. Book-lovers across the city have looked forward to this annual event far before the gleaming interiors of the other bookstores came into being.
While on this, here’s something that was written sometime back but will still be of interest to anyone who’s kicked about the Strand Book sale.
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In a city that loves designers, it is always good to go back to the philosophy of raste ka maal saste mein! Take a trip down the street with me while I poke into the tinsel of GlamourTown.
Roti (food), kapda (clothing) aur makan (shelter)…so the dictat goes. Roti (and also naan, idli, dosa, pizza, pasta and pita) is available in an appetizing variety while the glitz and glamour of teeny-weeny kapdas dazzle us. But what of makan? Oh well….life is always something short of perfect. For now, we settle for ramming our fresh fruit purchases in with the bling-thing that we call an LBD (Little Bright Dress!)
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I’ve developed a rather late interest in flowers. And why not? With all the frivolous things that we spend on, a little bit of beauty is much appreciated. Why must a gift always be intelligent or useful? How about just alive? Nothing better than a flower then. Here’s an account of my most recent floral jaunt.
Once, during my winter vacations, my grand-mother sent me downstairs to buy some vegetables. I knew nothing about veggies of course but her reassuring face hovered above from the balcony as she said she would point out the fresh ones from the rest. So I skipped down the stairs to catch the vegetable cart. Once I got to the bottom, I realized that he had started wheeling the cart away and was already at the end of the block. As I climbed up again, my grand-mother chided me
Why didn’t you call out for him to stop?
But I did! I kept shouting out ‘Bhajeewala! Bhajeewala!‘ but he didn’t stop!
Oh you silly child! They are called Sabzeewalas!
What? But he is a Bhajeewala, why should I call him anything else?
I am shopoholic! Shopping is therapeutic for me, and the best part is that after a shopping binge I dont regret my actions since I know that I have got the best deal I am Mumbaikar and hence I know were I can get what at the lowest possible rates. Like me every Mumbaikar loves to shop; kids, couple, college going teenagers, office goers every one like to keep updated with the latest fashion and trends. So it is not a surprise that we Mumbaikars are willing to go to the end of the world to purchase things at the most reasonable price one can ever find. Mumbaikars are bargain savvy and are always looking for the best deals they can lay hands on. Hence it is natural that Mumbai has hundreds of bazaars that cater to the Paisa vasool mentality of the population. I have lived in at least 5 cities in the 24 yrs of my life and Mumbai bazaars are the most unique and fascinating places I have come across. One of the reasons being that each bazaar has a history of its own and each specializes in selling particular goods. So Mumbaikars are well aware precisely which market they can get what. Before I go with the 7 best places to get a good shopping deal here are a few rules you must follow while shopping anywhere in Mumbai
Things to keep in mind while shopping Make sure you demand for a bill after every purchase (Not applicable when it comes to street side shopping)
Always bargain. You will almost never be told a reasonable price at the first go
Do not buy from the very first shop you enter/vendor. Visit as many shops/vendor as possible and buy where you get the best bargain
Try and be a regular customer for one or two shops, so that the shopkeepers know you and you get better discounts than others
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As anyone worth their palate will attest, some of the most amazing food in Bombay is the cheap roadside kind that a lot of people shun. Yes it can have sometimes questionable hygeine, sourcing etc, but come on, tell me your mouth dosent water at the thought of a vada pav, sheekh boti or bhel and ganna juice.
However it seems that as per a Supreme Court Directive, cooking on roadside pavements will be banned in the coming days.
Initially only three wards are going to be afftected, but if its a success, then the whole city will be engulfed.
Damn the powers that be. Why cant they come up with a working viable solution instead of just banning stuff.
Areas that are going to be test cases include Abdul Rehman Street, Zhaveri Bazaar, Ardeshir Dadi Street, Lokmanya Tilak Road, Matunga, Mahim Causeway and Bandra.
The Shiv Sena, it seems has resorted to petty bullying, now that it is all but obliterated in the political world. Its leader Bal Thakeray, “toothless tiger” as he is these days, needs to find real issues for his followers.
On Sunday
Shiv Sainiks affiliated to the Bharatiya Kamagar Sena (BKS) turned up in strength at Big Bazaar’s Mulund, Lower Parel and Kandivli stores to protest the sacking of 120 Marathi employees. [ Link ]
However the same article continues
Kishore Biyani, MD of Pantaloons, said, “Shiv Sena unnecessarily caused inconvenience to the customers and did not let them shop. Our customers are very important to us. The incident has maligned the reputation of Big Bazaar.”
“The 120 employees who are protesting were to be absorbed at the new Big Bazaar store at Raghuleela, Vashi. The store opening was delayed as the builder has not received the mandatory NOC from the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation.
We could not afford to keep so many employees at one store. We had to serve them termination notices,” said Atul Takle, head spokesperson, Pantaloon.
It is at times like this, that I wish we could have a delete button in politics and society, and automatically empty the “recycle bin”. How easy it would be to purge the Shiv Sainiks, and their ilk.
Photo credit The Hindu
