Delhi is a marvelous place for shoppers. The Connaught Place, the colonnaded shopping area in the center of town, offers good shopping. An entire range of Indian handicrafts and handlooms from all over the country can be found at the State Emporia on Baba Kharak Singh Marg and at the Central Cottage Industries Emporium on Janpath. Shops along the Janpath offer garments, leather work, curios, fabric and fine jewelery.
Chandni Chowk the once elegant ‘shopping mall’ of the Mughals is now a frantically busy area, but its little lanes often selling just silks, jewelery, semi precious stones or brassware are fascinating to explore and marvelous for picking up bargains
Main areas to Shop in Delhi
Palika Bazaar (Underground Market)
Address: Near cnr Connaught Circle & Radial Rd 1,
Connaught Place
A bustling underground bazaar with all sorts of consumer goods (clothing, electronics, fake wristwatches, CDs etc) aimed at Delhi’s middle-class. Tourists are invariably quoted inflated prices, so don’t be shy to bargain.
Sarojini Nagar Market
Address: Sarojini Nagar
Good-value Western-style clothes (seek out the lanes lined exclusively with clothing stalls), that have been dumped here either because they were an export surplus or from a canceled line. Check for holes, faulty zips, crooked seams, stains and missing buttons. Bargain hard. Avoid Sunday afternoons when Sarojini swarms with elbowing shoppers.
South Extension Market Parts I & II
Popularly known as South Ex I & II
Address: Near MG Rd, South Extension
This high-class market is comprised of two enclaves, on opposite sides of the road, each selling designer clothing, jewelery, shoes, handbags and sportswear. Bg’s is strictly chick territory, with a glittering treasure trove of costume jewelery and flashy hairclips.
Ansal Plaza
Address: Khel Gaon Marg, South Delhi
A modern shopping mall squarely geared towards well-to-do locals, with shops selling designer clothes, foreign-brand cosmetics, fashionable costume jewelery etc.
Chandni Chowk
Address: Chandni Chowk
Chandni Chowk is the old city’s famous shopping street. Here you’ll find carpets and jewelery but you’ll need to search the convoluted back alleys, which is half the fun. There are some good-value silver shops; a pair of silver toe-rings, for instance, can be as little as Rs70.
Greater Kailash’s M-Block & N-Block Markets
Address: M-Block & N-Block, Greater Kailash I
An upmarket shopping enclave best known for its awesome garment and home-furnishings store Fabindia, which has fantastic ready-made clothes that won’t look odd back home. It also sells organic jams and bodycare products. Next door is Cottons, which has a smaller clothing selection but is also worth a peek.
Hauz Khas Village
Address: Green Park
Hauz Khas Village in south Delhi is an atmospheric shopping enclave, although it’s lost the magic of its earlier (less commercial) days. You’ll find designer furniture shops, art galleries and boutiques geared towards the upper end of the market.
Janpath (Tibetan) Market
Address: Janpath, Connaught Place
Beckoning tourists with its shimmering mirrorwork textiles, colorful shawls, brass Oms, psychedelic T-shirts, dangly earrings and trinkets galore, is this touristy belt running north of the Imperial hotel. It has some good finds if you rummage through the junk. Haggle hard.
Karol Bagh Market
Address: Karol Bagh
This middle-class market sells competitively-priced consumer goods, from kidswear to kitchenware. Get spice-happy at Roopak’s (6/9 Ajmal Khan Rd) two side-by-side shops with similar spices. Their namkin (savoury nibbles) are ideal for long train journeys – the roasted green lentils are a healthy alternative to the mostly fried varieties.
Khadi Gramodyog Bhavan
Address: Connaught Circus, New Delhi
Best known for its khadi (homespun cloth) Indian-style clothing, but also worth a visit for its handmade paper, incense, spices and henna. There are also natural soaps that look good enough to eat, from basil and rosewater to mango and mint. The multi-counter purchasing system is ludicrous – arrive early to avoid queues, especially just before the Diwali festival.
Lajpat Nagar Central Market
Address: Lajpat Nagar
This market attracts bargain-hunting locals’ on the prowl for household goods, clothing and jewelery. If you’ve fallen in love with those colorful jangly bangles widely worn by Indian women, you can find them here.
