For your quirky fix

CHENNAI: If you’ve been to the Masala Chai store inside Ashvita Café before, you would know what to expect from their second showcase, maybe even excitedly go through your shopping list as you walk up the long, narrow path, off RK Salai, that leads to the store. But if you are a first-timer, you’ll be in for a surprise. On September 3 and 4, the one-of-its-kind store had on display a bunch of things, right from sarees with Buddha prints to coasters with the Little Women characters on them. One may feel like a hippe, in the well-lit hall, looking through Chai Tea Lights from a brand called Fireflies, beaded cloth bracelets and long chains, colourful tote bags with owls and Tamil alphabet prints, urbane-looking decoupage drawers, mirrors and trays, flamboyant wallets, bags and clutches, printed jumpsuits from Aarti Kalro, gold plated jewellery from Caitanya and solid-looking mugs with Indian graphics. All products on display were quirky, with desi, yet aesthetic touches to them. Started in November last year, the store which began as a website to act as a platform for visual artists and designers of South Asian heritage from around the world, is run by Pavitra Mohan.The Fine Arts graduate says, “We are planning to do a showcase to introduce new designers every two months.” What stood out at the showcase were the vicarious handmade notebooks, diaries and journals from a group of National Institute of Design students, who call themselves Bechain Nagri and the iPod pouches from a Korean-based artist with Indian origins.And if the Little Women coasters caught your fancy, you would definitely like the ones with speech bubbles and funny dialogues on them. For details, call 4210 9990.[email protected]