Shopping in Chennai

Women from all over India, and even those settled abroad, come in droves to Chennai lured by the amazing collection of beautiful hand-woven silk saris sold here. Kancheepuram saris with their vibrant colours, intricate gold brocades and designs are the most sought after. Worn mostly on special occasions, these saris can cost a fortune depending on the quality of the silk and the gold threads involved in their making. There are many upmarket shops in Chennai that deal only in Kancheepuram saris. Other types of apparel and fabrics too have a ready market in Chennai and a number of shops that sell ready to wear and fashionable modern clothes dot the city.

Handicrafts, traditional art works, jewellery and brass and bronze products sold in Chennai make wonderful gifts and decorative items and are quite popular with the local population and visitors alike. Poompuhar, Government Emporium and the Victoria Technical Institute at Anna Salai offer some of the best handmade art and craft products in the region. The materials used include sandalwood, ivory, silver, bronze, rosewood, bamboo and stone and the products come from local craftsmen as well as from across India. Intricately designed traditional gold and silver jewellery have a lot of takers so jewellery shops in Chennai do brisk business.

Of late, many of the traditional shopping areas in Chennai are getting spruced up as they face stiff competition from the new glitzy shopping centres coming up all around. This vibrant city is a major trade centre and has seen rapid industrialisation and economic growth in the last few years with the result that trendy new shopping centres, malls and arcades have cropped up all over the place.

The new Chennai shops and malls, with their fancy layouts and food courts, are especially popular with young folk looking for a place to hang out. They also showcase the latest fashion wear, top-notch gadgets, gift items and other stuff. The traditional markets and bazaars with their special ambience, crowds and hustle and bustle are some of the most charming places to shop at and fine tune your bargaining skills. Bargaining is very much a part of the Chennai shopping culture and makes shopping a whole lot of fun.

Anna Salai (the most upmarket shopping area), Mount Road, Pondi Bazaar, Burma Bazaar (where you get all kinds of imported goods), Parrys Corner, Panagal Park market and Ranganathan Street are some of the popular shopping areas and everything from knick-knacks and curios to branded designer goods and high-tech gadgets are available at these places. George Town is the place to go to buy all kinds of stuff in bulk. It comprises a tangled maze of streets full of shops and maintains its unique local character. Spencers Plaza at Anna Salai is a landmark Chennai shopping mall and one of the largest in India.

Avid readers will love Chennai as it is home to a lot of good book shops and is well known for the many second-hand book stores and road-side stalls where, with a little patience, one might come across great classics, first editions and collectors' items at unbelievable prices.