Most women believe in the universal faith that they are born to shop . Why do sane rational people allow themselves to be afflicted by this bug of wanting more and more despite the skyrocketing cost of living ? How can people worldwide be collectively swept away in glee by this massive tidal wave of consumerism ? Its strange but fun and true .
My shopping days began with my mom and sister . Every weekend mom would take us to the butcher , the vegetable vendor , the fish market and finally the snack shops for a bhel-puri (classic roadside snack ) or vada-pav (potato burger ) at Koldongri market at the junction of Vile Parle and Andheri where we grew up. It was the first step when we were being trained on how to choose the best, freshest cuts of meat and fish . I must say, till date , food shopping is definitely one of my most enjoyable shopping experiences more so at farmer's markets and pure vegetable shops compared to supermarket shopping which is more like a food museum for me . I cannot help examine various kinds of packaged , processed foods from all over the world and have often succumbed to trying some novel foodstuff .
The next transition in shopping habits happened in college when we girlfriends would often go to Vile Parle market to buy junk jewelry like ear rings that we could barely afford with our low middle-class pocket money . In those days which seem eons ago, there were no shopping malls , and clothes shopping was mostly buying textiles from the ' matching centre ' at Dinanath shopping center and getting it stitched at the tailor's. Everybody had a personalised shopping experience where the shopkeepers knew you,would order cold drinks or tea for us customers, offer bargains and have a pleasant chat . Shopper's stop department store opened after a few years which was supposed to be a big deal . A few years later, India's first mall 'Crossroads ' opened with a bang in town which caused a major furore as it caused tremendous traffic jams due to the uncontrollably high volume of curious visitors who would come to see what a ' mall ' was all about . Tourist buses had made it a major tourist attraction and they had to clamp limits on visitors as residents undertook protests against the traffic clogging nightmares thay had to live daily .
A few years ago , shopping malls have mushroomed like there is no tommorrow all over Indian cities . Fully air conditioned with cinema multiplexes , food courts , department stores , indian and foreign brands , kiddies play areas , late opening hours all under one roof , its the place to be for families,couples or individuals to escape from home / work or college . There is no doubt malls are here to stay as they cater to our consumerism needs . But it does 'nt fascinate me anymore than my favourite ' export reject ' shops at Cumballa Hill or the ' lucknowi chikan ' tiny shop at Vile Parle. The handicrafts shop tucked away behind the saree showroom houses a treasure of carefully selected handmade indian decor who personally delivers the goods to your home the same day . The massive silk saree emporiums in Chennai and unbelievably low priced high street clothes sold at Pondicherry had me delirious with joy .
After moving to Scotland,it was ' low - street ' buys that continue to remain my favourite like Primark ,Watt Brothers, TJ Hughes , Dunnes etc in Glasgow which is the second best shopping capital of the UK after London. I could'nt be bothered about designer stores and have felt like a fish out of water when I visited them just for a ' look ' . After moving to the vintage town of Chichester where most shops are designer stores or charity shops, I naturally gravitate towards the charity shops which have amazingly new items at ridiculous bargains .
