The bangle seller

This shop in Old Delhi is 182 years old and still in high fashion

No matter how much the trends change, nothing can beat glass bangles. Brightly coloured glass bangles have always been in vogue and are the latest fashion statement, on college campuses and at high-flying social events.

Ballimaran, a street in Old Delhi’s Chandni Chowk, was once full of bangle sellers - who not only sold but also manufactured their wares - but now there are hardly any. One of them is Babu Miyan of Babu Miyan Churi Wala, a bangle store set up in 1823 by his ancestors.

“For five generations our family has been into business and I belong to the fifth,” he says. He recalled the stories told by his grandmother, Rukaiya Begum.

“There was a time when a stream ran through Chandni Chowk and women came in boats to Ballimaran to buy bangles. On special occasions they would ask the women bangle sellers to visit their homes.

"Till late 1960s, the tradition was to call bangle sellers at home and it was during the 1970s that women started visiting shops to buy bangles.”

Changed times

Now there is no more a stream in Old Delhi, only a sea of people, cyclists and rickshaws struggling to make its way in and out of the winding alleys.

Due to the congestion, some bangle sellers have either left the profession or have shifted their business to Hanuman Mandir in central Delhi, and Lajpat Nagar in south Delhi.

Babu Miyan has set up shops in those two areas, but he has not given up his store in Chandni Chowk. While his elder brother sits at their shop in Chandni Chowk, Babu Miyan takes care of the Lajpat Nagar shop, which was opened three years ago.

Keeping pace with changing trends, Babu Miyan has come up with interesting designs. His handmade creations have made it to numerous TV serials and Bollywood films including Devdas, Khalnayak, Sholay and Badhai Ho Badhai.

Film stars such as Raveena Tandon and Karishma and Kareena Kapoor are extremely fond of bangles designed by Babu Miyan.

He says, “Several fashion designers too visit us to get bangles designed to match the embroidery done on the outfits. The latest trend is to emboss the names of the bride and the groom on bangles for marriages.”

Even while he talks, a bunch of college girls enter his shop and Babu Miyan gets busy showing them his colourful creations. And the colours are not subtle.

Blue, green, orange, black and fuchsia look funky with every kind of attire. “Lacquer bangles were a favourite among women in old times,” he reminiscences.

Nidhi Kapoor, a Delhi University student, is of the opinion that glass bangles go well with almost any kind of clothing including jeans, saris and suits.

“Glass bangles give a very feminine look and enhance the beauty of the wearer. I generally wear designs that are associated with films. The best thing about glass bangles is that they do not burn a hole in your pocket,” she said.