City shopping hubs lightup

With less than a week to go for the festival of lights, shopping frenzy has just set in. It is that time of the year when normal restrictions on household budgets take a backseat and you end up spending money on yourself, your home, neighbours and friends. Apart from gifts, diyas and lights, you also check out the latest fashion trends in vogue. Crackers are one of the most-looked forward part of the festival. We bring you the latest in fashion, gifting, lights and of course, crackers that have taken over the markets in the city.

Take a stroll down the Govindappa Naicken Street in George Town, a stretch known for being the hub of light fittings and electrical products. They have a whole range of lights for the festive season. But the one that caught our eye and is probably the best confluence of the traditional and modern are the electric and designer diyas. Fitted with tiny bulbs, they are pretty and can instantly light up your terrace, balcony or interiors of your house. “These electric diyas are convenient to use and can be packed and used again next year. Despite the fact that they are more expensive than the earthen lamps, in the long run, they are economical. Not to forget the fact, that many do not have the patience of sitting and preparing earthen diyas with oil or ghee as well as cotton wicks, before they are lit with match sticks,” says MB Jain of MB Power House at the Govindappa Naicken street. These lamps cost anywhere between Rs 40 to Rs 150. In addition, there are other varieties of Chinese lights that have flooded the market. “Although we heard many people are asking for a ban on Chinese lights, they seem to be everywhere. They are affordable and fancy, what else can one ask for!” he says.

Every year, when the rocket flies high and bursts into an umbrella of colourful embers, people flock to open spaces to watch this spectacle in awe; the beauty raining down towards them. Elsewhere, children quickly light up a fire wheel which dances on the floor as a couple of noisy bombs go off in the background. It is these sounds and sparkles that mark Deepavali, more than anything else and Chennaiites have already set out on buying spree to stock up on their share of fireworks.  

While there are umpteen stores in every nook and corner selling a range of crackers, the 58-store cracker bazaar set-up on Island grounds in the city is Asia’s largest showroom yet. Navrang R Abdul Rahman, Joint Secretary, Chennai Fireworks Welfare Association, says, “This year all the crackers are within permissible limits. Also, as consumers are very particular about the eco-friendly factors, most fireworks have been manufactures with that aspect in consideration.” 

Speaking about the new variety of crackers in the market, R Ram Kumar, a fireworks dealer, says, “Apart from the new sky-shots that go up to about 200 metres, we have introduced in-house crackers that do not give out smoke or noise. There is a rocket that has 1,000 crackers packed into one. It’s called 1,000 sky-shots and it flares up in the sky to provide a visual spectacle for an hour. We also have 3D crackers which comes with a 3D glass. Flower pots, Roman candles, sparklers and aerial shells are some of the 3D crackers varieties.” 

It is the joy of gifting on the festive occasion that is unparalleled. Speaking of unique gifts, designer Amrita Giriraj of Alankaara, a brand under which she makes hand-crafted wonders, has mastered the art of capturing flowers in bubbles of fiber glass, that result is exquisite platters, glasses, jewellery and more with pressed wild flowers that retain their colour and true essence in the finished product. “I’ve used wild flowers like dandelions and weeds which are specially procured from the horticulture society. The flowers are sun-dried using tempered glass and fibre glass and it is then poured into moulds to create the final product,” explains Amrita. Nitin Chordia of Cocoatrait, an artisanal chocolates brand, has left it to the customers to make their own gift hampers. “Customers can choose from 43 different artisanal, hand-crafted chocolate bars and 15 different types of jam specially ordered from the Himalayas. Also, the hampers are handwoven by women from Andhra Pradesh,” says Nitin.

On a Friday evening, as we pushed and shoved our way through the extremely crowded Ranganathan Street in T Nagar, it was apparent that Chennaiites were frantically hunting for the perfect Diwali wear. The street was filled with women trying to purchase the perfect outfits to adorn on the day of the festival. It was interesting to note that the Indo-western look was a clear favourite. The floor-length anarkali and embellished long gowns were picked by many. “Keeping themselves updated through films and fashion events, most women are enquiring about the long embellished gowns or floor-length anarkalis. They have heavy embroidery on them and are one-piece, so easy to carry,” said a salesman at the Saravana stores. They are ranged from Rs 800 to Rs 3,000 and are available in beautiful shades of red, pink, green and blue. 

We saw a group of girls at an accessory stall on the street, trying to match their dresses with appropriate ear and neck accessories. “I didn’t want to wear the usual salwar-suit for Diwali. We really loved the idea of embellished gowns. They give a real festive feel and yet, unlike saree are easy to wear. They also look contemporary. I am looking for a big jhumka to wear with the one-piece dress,” said Janaki, as she showed us her purchase, a pretty blue gown with golden embellishments.