Yesterday, I went shopping for glass bangles to match with the saris I wear. I love these trinkets – bangles, bindis, earrings and stuff mostly metallic ! So anyway, this is in the big vegetable mandi or market of Hyderabad with its curious collection of shops ranging from small to big. They sell fruits, flowers, veggies, motley things, household stuff, you name it and they seem to stock it ! I went with my mother-in-law to this place. She knows the way around this array of galis.
We spent a couple of hours buying the bangles mostly I spent the time deciding the colours. Then we went to buy a few veggies. There was this bhindi seller who was calling people to buy his ladyfingers by saying that it was brain food and it was best to buy a lot :). My mil bargained the price with him and also ended up buying another veggie, I am not sure of its name, because of this chap’s selling skills. He was fluent in Telugu and Hindi and when we were leaving, he spoke to us in English saying do visit again. He commented that I know English too :). My mil said most definitely. Its amazing that these guys sitting in this scorching sun manage to retain their humour and actually regale people with their talk.
Another thing about such markets is that one has to be really sharp at bargaining. The sellers and the buyers both love to indulge in it. I am very poor at it. My mil does a great job. My late mother was so relentless and could quote a price which would drive us kids so roll our eyes down in shame lest the shopkeeper threw us out of the shop. But, most times she managed great bargains. Alas, I could not learn this skill from her.
We managed to buy some fresh figs too and then looked for an auto to take us home. These big markets with myriad tiny stalls, the smell of fresh veggies, flowers, agarbattis are the true barometers of a place. The experience they provide is priceless.