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PONDICHERRY SHOPPING SPREE
Location : Pondicherry
Principal Shopping Centres : M. G. Road & Nehru Street
Let's Talk About Shopping
Pondicherry is a favourite stomping ground of the passionate shopper.
It's a perfect destination for everything from cars to consumer goods. In
addition, there is an enticingly low sales tax. The shops casually down
their shutters for a siesta, which only makes the entire shopping
experience more enjoyable.
TEXTILES FROM PONDICHERRY
Pondicherry has long been a centre for the production of household linen
and garment textiles in satin, twill, corduroy, poplin, chambray, oxford
and cambric. Khadi (a home-spun fabric) comes through as nice,
easy-to-care-for clothing. Crisp, printed cotton fabrics, smelling of
fresh dye roll out at great pace from the Anglo-French textile mill in
Pondicherry. With a work force of 5,000, fabric from this 100-year-old
company are sold throughout Europe, the US, Australia and the Middle East.
POTTERY
Excellent
ceramic artists and artisans work in Pondicherry and Auroville. They keep
a keen eye out for the right kind of clay and glazes and make the kilns
appropriate to the local environment. Lending their signature an elegant
simplicity and a unique decorative flourish.
Various studios have evolved distinctive styles, such as "Golden
Bridge" and "Rhinestone Art" which are both contemporary
and Pondicherrian.
THE BOUTIQUES OF PONDY
Shop-hoppers will relish the pleasant ambience, which the boutiques of
Pondy provide. There's one almost down every street. Upon entering, the
fragrant whiff of incense and the glow of perfumed candles draw you
further in.
They
cater to a wide range of tastes, offering stylish garments, semi-precious
stones, perfumes, hand-made incense, candles embossed with real petals,
marbled silks and aromatherapy products. With something for everyone, the
merchandise begs for ownership. French antique furniture bedazzles. There
are also quaint Tibetan handicrafts on offer.
LEATHER
Making leather the forgotten way, with exacting attention to detail, is
what separates the Pondicherry brands from the rest. Carefully finished,
innovative products with quality brass buckles and locks come for a steal.
HANDMADE
PAPER
Since 1959, the Aurobindo Ashram factory has popularised the use of
handmade paper. Its scope of textures and colours has made it one of
Pondicherry's best-loved products in markets all over the world.
THE PRINCIPAL SHOPPERS' STOPS
The principal "up market" shopping street is J.N. or Nehru
Street, particularly the stretch between St. Louis Street and M.G. Road.
Close behind is Mission Street, which has good shops along its whole
length.
Other shopping arteries are M.G. (for Gandhi) Road and Anna Salai (the
western boulevard). They bustle with buyers and sellers for whom low
over-heads mean a lot.
The strategic shopping intersections or junctions are Nehru and Mission,
and Nehru and M.G. Road. Some of the side streets have two names - one
long and formal (and variously spelled), the other short and used in
conversation.
The Street Name Game
Major instances of the Name Game are to be found in the streets parallel
to and north of Nehru Street.
- Ambalathadayar Madam Street is also known as Kosakadai Street.
- Caltisvaran Koil is also known as Chetty Street.
- Calve Supraya Chettiar is also known as Vysial Street.
- Cathedral Street is generally called Mission Street.
- Sri Aurobindo Street is sometimes called Aravindar.
- And Kovil, Covil and Koil all mean the same thing: Temple.
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