SHOPPING
Must Buys: Chikan Salwaar Suits, Perfumes Or Ittar
Main Shopping Centers: Hazratganj And Bazaars Of Aminabad & Chowk.
Shopping areas: - Hazratganj, Aminabad and Chowk
The bazaars of Aminabad and Chowk are interesting even if
you are window-shopping. In fact, there are few showrooms here; most of
the shops flow into the streets with vendors sitting with their wares on
the roads. Wholesale markets sell a wide range of goods: antique
furniture, furnishings, utensils, dress materials, coolers, even
vegetables. A good bargain is not difficult, if you have mastered the art
of haggling.
In
the narrow lanes of Aminabad you can buy attar - pure essentials oils
extracted from flowers in the traditional manner and jhaalar (colourful
tasselled borders for dupattas). In Chowk, there is a bird-sellers
district known as Nakkas; pigeon-keeping and cock-fighting have been
popular in Lucknow since the time of the Nawabs.
Heritage Hazratganj: "At last we suddenly entered a very
handsome street indeed, wider than the High Street at Oxford, but having
some distant resemblance to it in the colour of its buildings and the
general form and Gothic style of the greater part of them". In 1824,
such was Lucknow´s main street. As with everything else, what was
once termed a street of noble width had in 1856 become a narrow road.
Today, Hazratganj, full of glittering shops and magnificent arcades, plush
hotels, fancy eateries, is Lucknow's fashionable district, so to speak.
'Ganj-ing,' a term synonymous with the easy amble of Lucknowites has
become one of the city's favorite past-times. Free time, especially for
the young, means a quick jaunt to Hazratganj.
Charm
of Chikan : In Lucknow, everyone shops for chikan. Done
originally on pristine white material and creating delicately textured
surfaces on fine mulls and muslin, chikankari craft was Empress Noor
Jehan's gift to India. It had its finest flowering in the 17 th and 18th
centuries under the Nawabs of Avadh. The traditional chikankari motifs of
creepers and vine are done in a variety of stitches, the most basic being
the back stitch. The stitch is done on the wrong side of the cloth and the
design is done on the right side by tiny, running stitches creating a
fantastically ethereal effect.
There are six types of stitches which are traditionally popular.
Taipchi : This is the women's domain and is simple and the
cheapest type of work. It is a type of stem stitch with which the outlines
are worked.
Bakhia : is the most beautiful stitch in Chikankari . In this, the
thread appears only below the surface and small stitches are seen on the
right side for outlining the motif. Below the right side of the cloth, the
threadwork makes the covered surface opaque thus creating a delicate
effect of light and shade.
Khatao : is an embroidery of greater delicacy and rare these days.
Earlier it was considered a poor cousin of the traditional Chikankari.
This stitch was a form of applique work prepared on Calico material by
placing Calico over the surface and working out floral patterns on the
cloth. The details were filled by simple stem stitch.
Phanda and Murri : These are the most characteristic forms of
Chikan work and are used mostly to work out the center of the flowers to
evolve patterns such as angoori bale. Murri means rice and phanda, millet
shape.
Jali
: In the true Jali work, the thread is never drawn. The jali is
normally worked by teasing the warp and woft threads of the cloth apart
and by preparing minute button hole stitches to make a hole of 3/16th of
an inch. There are different shapes of Jalis: Sidhuri, Madrasi and
Calcutta jali.
Mango Industry: Dussehri mangoes are exported to different parts
of the world. Rich in taste, aroma and attractive in color, the pulp is
used to make pickles, chutneys, squash, fruit juice, jam, jell, syrup and
nectar.
Perfumes - Ittar - Perfumes have long been used in the
city and are available in various fragrances and in exquisite bottles of
cut-glass work. In the days of the nawabs, perfumes were used not only on
the person but also added to the food to give it more fragrance and taste.
Different herbs and flowers are used in the preparation of perfumes, like
the khus, and rose. A choice of traditional perfumes can be found in many
shops in Aminabad and Chowk.
