I came across an article on
Swades – Reflections of India in Little Black Book (LBB, Delhi) quite by
accident while surfing the Net recently. I was surprised to learn that this
little shop had been selling handicraft and hand loom products (items I’m quite
crazy about) for over a year bang next door to me. It’s located in Central
Market, Sector 50, Noida. And here I had been running all over Dilli Haat,
Fab India, etc, for similar stuff all this while. How had I missed this gem
when I usually spent half of my time scouting for such shops in every nook and
cranny close to home?
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| Swades -- Reflections of India |
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| Kapil and Mani Rohatgi |
I made the first visit to the
shop simply out of curiosity and met Mani Rahatgi, the owner, who personally
gave me a guided tour of the shop. Soon after I met Kapil Rohatgi, her husband,
and learnt that it also keeps silver treasures (earrings, necklaces, pendants).
Now I really have a soft corner for silver, so that was one of the first things I explored. And I wasn’t
disappointed. The silver is genuine. Soon they plan to start on gold jewellery
as well. They have both popular and exclusive designs, so if you’re one for authentic
stuff, it is the right place for you.
While chatting with them I came
to know that Mani had had a long career in teaching before she quit to pursue
her passion – collecting traditional artifacts, handloom items and silver
jewellery from all over India and setting up this shop. Kapil has a career in
travel, but treats Swades as an alternative that really is a passion.
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| Bed cover |
Our association developed into
friendship pretty quickly. So much so that now I’m at their shop every other
week – just to say hello if nothing else. It is a cozy space and I like visiting
it over and over again to explore the new additions. I’ve rarely come across a couple so devoted to
their work and so eager to showcase it to every customer or window-shopper who
happens to step inside. They describe it as a ‘total desi store’ into which they
have put their heart and soul. They travel all over the country and meet
artisans personally. Every item is hand-picked. They don’t compromise on
quality and it shows. Also, the products are reasonably priced. In fact there is a whole range available when it comes to fabric and linen.
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| Bed cover |
Right now the Noida shop is their
only shop, though they hope to expand and open other branches in the future. The
items range from fabrics (traditional yarns) – to Kalamkari and Kantha dupattas,
hand-knotted and painted dupattas, ordinary cotton and Kantha bed sheets/bedcovers
(including king-size), and now also cushion covers. Mani also has a good tailor to suggest -- just in case -- and she may be visiting the shop for her customers once a week.
Amongst artefacts you can find Sancheti figurines of all sizes, Bastar tribal wrought iron crafts and wall hangings, fancy metal planters and tea-light hangers and holders, Rajasthani photo frames and jewellery boxes, traditional brass figurines, antique wooden chests and marble-top stools, etc. Every few weeks there are new additions.
The shop is certainly worth a visit. If you haven’t done your Dussera/Diwali shopping yet, I strongly recommend that you try it out for various gift items. You will not regret it. J
Swades – Reflections of India,
B-37/1, 1st Floor, Central Market, Sector 50, Noida
Ph: +919810719265
Email: manirohatgi@gmail.com
FB page: https://www.facebook.com/swades2016/
