Mumbai (Bombay)
It's worth popping in to this high-end traditional garment shop to see the space itself, a gorgeous, cavernous, rose-oil-scented stunner chock-full of…
Must-see shopping in South India
Mumbai (Bombay)
Behold Bandra's – and Mumbai's – coolest shop, featuring exclusive graphic art and illustrations sourced from a global army of Indian artists. You'll find…
Mumbai (Bombay)
Mumbai's coolest design shop has thankfully arrived in South Mumbai! Fittingly, the Pop Art cool kid from Bandra has set up shop in Kala Ghoda, where its…
Pune
This craft revival project cofounded by four women champions the dying Indian art of handcrafted metalware from artisans in Pune, the Konkan Coast and…
Mumbai (Bombay)
Indian Hippy will put your name in lights, with custom-designed Bollywood posters hand-painted on canvas by the original studio artists (a dying breed…
Mumbai (Bombay)
Chor Bazaar is known for antiques, though be wary of reproductions. The main area of activity is Mutton St, where shops specialise in these ‘antiques’ and…
Bengaluru (Bangalore)
A great choice for top-quality silk saris, blouses, fabrics and men’s shirts, this fine store has been in business for over 70 years and has something to…
Mumbai (Bombay)
Kitschy, design-y goods such as stylish embroidered T-shirts, funky coffee mugs and coasters, and superhip graphic art, including beaded embroidered art…
Bengaluru (Bangalore)
Great little bookshop selling new and secondhand, cult and mainstream books and comics. Good for titles on southern India and run by informed, helpful…
Mumbai (Bombay)
Ethically sourced cotton and silk fashions and homewares in everybody's favourite modern-meets-traditional Indian shop.
Mumbai (Bombay)
Worth a visit as much for the spectacle if not to buy, this near-century-old traditional oil shop still hand-presses its medicinal, cooking and massage…
Chennai (Madras)
Set up in 1928, the enormous, supercolourful granddaddy of Chennai silk shops sparkles with wedding saris and rainbows of Kanchipuram silks, as well as…
Chennai (Madras)
Open since 1844, this grand white building is reckoned to be India's oldest bookshop. It has a brilliant English-language selection, including travel and…
Anjuna
Anjuna’s weekly Wednesday flea market is as much part of the Goan experience as a day on the beach. More than three decades ago, it was conceived and…
Mumbai (Bombay)
Under the discerning eye of gourmet entrepreneur Samyukta Nair, this Colaba concept store occupies a late-19th-century art deco building chock-full of…
Mumbai (Bombay)
One of Mumbai's oldest shops and born of a dying breed, this family-run retailer kicked off in 1918. Today, friendly grandson Paresh still hawks the…
Mumbai (Bombay)
One of Mumbai's hottest new brands, this small showroom, overseen by Nandi the Holy Cow in logo, art and design, is an interior-design oasis in Mangaldas…
Mumbai (Bombay)
This trendy, bespoke shirt tailor for men and women will outfit you in some seriously cool threads for a fraction of prices back home. You can customise…
Mumbai (Bombay)
A trendy, bespoke shirt tailor for men and women. You can customise everything – collars, buttons, cuffs and twill tapes. The results are stunning and the…
Mumbai (Bombay)
Haji Abu's small Chor Bazaar shop offers a cornucopia of vintage Bollywood posters, lobby cards and show cards dating to the 1930s (originals and reprints…
Hyderabad
Running west from the Charminar, this bazaar is famed for its sparklingly colourful bangle shops. A Hyderabad specialty are lac bangles, made from a…
Government Silk-Weaving Factory
Mysuru (Mysore)
Given that Mysuru’s prized silk is made under its very sheds, this government-run outlet, set up in 1912, is the best and cheapest place to shop for the…
Mysuru (Mysore)
Simply outstanding selection of natural products (priced from ₹80), many of them organic, including essential oils and natural cosmetics, fruit and veg,…
Hyderabad
Lovely women's (and some men's) clothes in artisanal fabrics with contemporary prints and colours. They also sell homeware including bed linen, cushions…
Mumbai (Bombay)
Selling the intricate embroidery work of women in 114 villages in Kutch, Gujarat, the nonprofit Shrujan aims to help women earn a livelihood while…
Hyderabad
Malkha cloth is made near the cotton fields, by hand and with natural dyes, reducing strain on the environment and putting primary producers in control…
Hyderabad
Fine quality saris, kurtas (long collarless shirts), salwar kameez (dresslike tunic and loose, long pants for women) sets (from ₹2545) and other…
Hyderabad
This fourth-generation family business can conjure something aromatic up for you on the spot. They specialise in ittar, natural perfume oils from flowers…
Mumbai (Bombay)
This new and excellent high-end boutique from the same folks who brought us Good Earth is a great spot to pick up carefully curated homewares, travel…
Hyderabad
Suvasa's block-printed kurtas are priced from around ₹1200 in cotton, and they also have high-quality salwar and dupattas. Homeware, including gorgeous…
Karnataka
Fair-trade store selling beautiful handmade textiles, bags, saris, kurtas and accessories. Prices start at ₹800. Profits benefit an NGO that empowers…
Bengaluru (Bangalore)
Tea-lovers, rejoice: this wonderful store has more than 70 varieties of tea, from grand crus to humble teabags, many personally curated by master tea…
Karnataka
Look on at this small workshop as artisans make a range of handicrafts and accessories using the bark of a banana tree and recycled materials. It's all…
Mumbai (Bombay)
Art deco and colonial-era furniture, wooden ceremonial masks, silver, Victorian glass, plus high-quality reproductions of old photos, maps and paintings.
Hampi
Run by an amiable musician who teaches djembe (drums) and didgeridoo, this store sells Indian and Western musical instruments at fair prices.
Mumbai (Bombay)
Championing a dying art, this fascinating shop sells handmade, cotton-based paper crafted into charming cards, sculptures and lampshades.
Bengaluru (Bangalore)
High-end natural beauty products, including potions and lotions for hair, face and body as well as all-organic ayurvedic essential oils.
Hampi
Excellent selection of books on Hampi and India, plus secondhand fiction. The owner offers a free Hampi map and sells postcards, too.
Kodagu (Coorg) Region
Opposite the bus stand, Choci Coorg does many varieties of chocolate, lots of fruity and nut combos and a unique betel-nut flavour.
Hyderabad
An upmarket mall with a good selection of clothes shops including M&S and Levi's, ATMs, a small food court, cafes and a cinema.
