Arts, Crafts and More at Kalanjali

What you see - Kalanjali was once known only for its arts and crafts. But apart from the home decor stuff, what you can see over here are lots of sarees and dress materials. Anyway, before you visit this shop, it is better to decide what exactly you want to buy. That's because once you enter you will be dazed just by looking at the massive collection of clothes, home decor items, handloom and the like.

What you get - Kalanjali has two sections - the fancy apparel section and the handloom section. The massive air-conditioned fancy apparel section again has separate sections for kids' wear, men's wear and of course women's wear (lion's share of the space). And just beside the kids' section, there is a kid's zone where little ones can enjoy while their Mamas splurge. The zone is small but serves the purpose.

In fact, the variety in kids' wear is also huge over here. Well-designed frocks, ghaghras, skirts, western wear, salwar suits, stone-studded three-piece suits, denims, kurta pyjamas, and sherwanis with stoles are all available here. An embroidered and stone-studded three-piece suit for a 5-6 year old costs a little above Rs. 13, 000 here.

Men can get to see popular brands like Wills, Louis Philippe, Indian Terrain, Blackberry, Pepper and Levi's over here apart from embroidered kurta pyjamas and sherwanis. As far as the women's collection is concerned, salwar suits (some are really loud and garish), chiffon and silk fabric, jute skirts with nice paintings all over (Rs. 650 and above), kurtis and ghaghras is what they have. Designer wear from Ritu Kumar is available here too, with the prices going up to Rs. 60,000.

The handloom section over here has dress materials in Jaipur and Orissa Cotton, Mangalgiri, Kalamkari and Pochampalli. Kurtis, dupattas, cotton ghaghras and sarees are all available here. You can even get casual and party wear kurtas (above Rs. 1,200 but worth a look), sherwanis and dhotis.

Go to a floor above that and you see a wide collection of arts and crafts ranging from hand-crafted rosewood dining tables (more than Rs. 2 lakh), miniature temples (mandirs), swings and sofa sets to paintings, stoneware (check out the exclusive marble pieces), metal ware and a mammoth 10-foot wooden carving of Lord Venkateshwara.

The verdict - If there is a wedding at home, this place is worth a try, especially for the women. The party wear kurtas are a must-see. And among the art items, they have some exclusive ones made from marble. Do check those out. Hey, wait! Before you collect your car keys to visit this store, make sure your pockets are deep enough to bear the sky-high prices as well.

Hyderabad Crafts has been written by MetroMela

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