New Money in Indore

Ever witnessed a mom and pop town transport itself to mega mass retail ? Go to Indore . It’s all happening there right now .
The first new spanking retail mall opened to curious Indorians a couple of weeks ago . Aptly called treasure island , people visited it from places as far as Ujjain , three quarters of an hour away and Bhopal which is a good one hundred and fifty kilometers away . All kinds of people thronged the mall as if it was an unidentified flying object , landing suddenly – bang in the centre of the town .
Indore is what my old collegue Gurudutt used to say , a one horse town . Three roads make this town of a million and a half – the MG road ( Mahatma Gandhi road – show me a town in India that doesn’t have one named after the father of the nation ) , the AB ( Agra-Bombay , not Amitabh Bachchan ) road and RNT marg ( what’s literate , nobel laureate Bengali Rabindranath Tagore doing in central India ?)
The most interesting bunch of shops are in an area called chappan dukaan , local lingo for fifty six shops . These are a set of great food shops all lined up in a straight no-nonsense path with each vying for your attention with its special preparations . From Aloo – tikki , chaats , bhajjias to dosas , idlis and Chinese noodles – all in one great food bazaar . The town was full of shopping centres like Ashok centre , Citicentre and Apollo square each of which had housed the city’s best jewelers , garment stores and restaurants . The retail revolution was restricted to a new coffee shop being opened or at best a new brand of apparel making a splash with a large showroom in one of these shopping centres .
And suddenly , poof ! lands this spacecraft called Treasure island .
And my good fortune , that I land there too to witness history in a completely un-historic town .
It is imposing even by Mumbai standards . A huge seven storey monolith with massive glass exteriors . Very well illuminated and airconditioned , it is home to brands like Geoffrey’s ; yup , the one in downtown Mumbai where you catch Rajesh Jhunjunwala , the filthy rich stock broker downing his drinks on penny stock losses , Be ; the outstanding women’s store selling great expensive tops , Noodle Bar ; the current chinese craze in Mumbai , Copper Chimney ; brilliant Indian food , barista ; the eighty rupee coffee and conversation joint and Benzer ; the uber-rich , uber-cool design store . They say , a swanky disc and lounge bar will open here alongside a multiplex , PVR , on the seventh floor.
The first day of its launch saw such a huge turnout that the mall owner , Mahesh Khilnani , decided to charge a hundred rupee entry fee . People still poured in , in droves . Twenty seven thousand people came in on the second day .That’s the kind of people who fill a stadium for a Dandiya in Gujarat . There was no place to stand , breathe or stare .
The mall closed doors on day three . Khilnani pondered on the issue .
As out-of-towners realized that this was just another set of stores where they could afford nothing , they cleared out .From the fourth day , local Indorians swelled as buzz mania engulfed them . There’s nothing much to do in Indore on a weekend . A mall offered a larger-than-life expansive , clean environment . Kids liked the limitless roof , the bright colours and the attention at each of the stores . The value shoppers like Big Bazaar , the Wal Mart of India , till Wal Mart comes to India , that is . There’s Dollar Store where everything costs a dollar or two .
As I looked around , I could see how people were devouring their first experience of a mall . The most exciting place was the escalator . There is such a commotion as people grapple with this new technology that takes them to the next floor giving them a ringside view of all that the mall offers . An old lady took a full five minutes to decide on choosing the escalator step . It was risky , but had to be done . Curious onlookers bade her on . Go , Go , Go .
There was this couple that carried a handycam around shooting the mall’s plush interiors . They moved around the shops capturing a historic moment in their lives .
A group of young students walked upto the open-air Barista counter and asked for coffee . They heard the price and exchanged glances .
One of them , a bright young smart guy with hair parted in the middle and a big extra large smile took the initiative .
‘Five coffees ‘
The young boy at the counter punched efficiently in the cash register .
‘ Mocha , Frappe or Cappuchino ?’
‘What’s Mocha ?’
‘ Basic frothy coffee while Cappuchino has rich chocolate and Frappe is cold coffee on the rocks ’
‘ Cappuchino ‘ , said one of the girls .
‘Frappe ‘ said two others .
‘And two Mocha’s ‘ said the young lead manager .
‘Any chocolate doughnuts ?’ he asked pointing to the doughnuts .
‘Three ‘ , he said with quick glances , indicating that the gang would share .
‘Four hundred and sixty ruppes .
The coffee and doughnuts were placed on a tray which the youngster carried onto the table . There was laughter , lots of giggling and absolute satisfaction .
This is new money , for sure .
Young , new money .
From the BPO park in Khandwa , perhaps .
Dollar employers . Rupee employees .
Younger consumers.
Who need a life .
So need the malls .

Indore , their sleepy one-horse town , has one now .