A Spiritual & Therapeutic Experience

It could easily be a destination in itself. Standing tall in the heart of New Delhi is Central Cottage Industries Emporium, a place as magnificent as the specialities it houses. Enter this abode of living crafts and you will leave feeling richer and relaxed. Reema Sisodia relives the experience

Surround yourself with India’, says the punchline of Central Cottage Industries Emporium (CCIE), a place that can easily be termed as a haven for exquisite Indian artifacts, crafts and handlooms. But after visiting it, you involuntarily modify the adage: ‘Surround yourself with the spiritual essence of India’. This is how the place should be described, you feel.

Step into CCIE and a world rich in culture and heritage engulfs you. It’s an experience highly therapeutic in nature, strengthened further by the aura and ambience. A perfect living habitat for Indian arts and crafts, CCIE has all the required components and ingredients to be recognised as a shopper’s paradise for Indian splendours. Authentic in terms of quality and class, this one-stop shop offers a wide gamut of products, from handlooms, art objects, marbleware, handicrafts, woodwork, to costume jewellery, pottery, painting crafts. You don’t have to undergo the agony of bargaining here. Durgesh Shankar, managing director, Central Cottage Industries Corporation of India Ltd (CCICIL), says, “The ‘most excellent’ products of the country are displayed at CCIE. Our mantra is excellence. You can feel a numinous experience while you shop, as the place brings you in direct contact with creativity, ingenuity and design. Don’t forget to take with you the Bankura Horse, the symbol of CCIE, which is also regarded as a lucky charm which fulfils wishes.”

Adding a special flavour to its home, CCIE is for the first time holding exhibitions based on themes that are abstract in nature. Colours and seasons are the theme for this year, where the colours of apparels will be matched with the various seasons of the year. With its branches spread in cities such as Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and Bangalore, one can savour the flavour of CCIE across India, adding a bit of craft to your life.