(From top) The Main Hoon Na team in the trademark school woollens; penguin mannequins flaunt the colours of the season; a model looks cosy in a wool jersey cropped top with tweed pants and a cowl neck fur. (Pictures by PTI and Reuters)

Just when you were about to put your colourful winter gear away, naphthalene balls firmly in place, the weather turned turtle. It took a smart shower on Monday night to finally drill mercurial sense into the brief city winter and the woollens are just beginning to make a special appearance.

And making merry long after Christmas are the malls, forced to offer heavy discounts on their woollen stock in the middle of the winter season. Shoppers? Stop outlets started doing brisk business from Tuesday morning itself and footfalls are steadily on the rise. ?So far, only light jackets were selling but now heavy woollens and solid knits have started moving,? says Naveen Misra, unit head, Shoppers? Stop at Forum.

Now, there are ready takers for Shah Rukh Khan sweaters, part of the star?s school uniform in Main Hoon Na. Besides, a lot of 70s style has found its way into winter gear at Shoppers? Stop. Especially popular are engineered stripes, a kind of weave with one side running on the other.

But what is really hot as the mercury drops are jackets, of every kind. ?Internationally, the sports look is in and Calcutta is catching on as well,? says Misra. Half-sleeve jackets are the hottest pick in this category, allowing you to show off that full-sleeved sweatshirt in a contrasting colour.

Designers in the city reiterate the rack rage. ?Jackets in all lengths are in this season,? says fashion designer Kiran Uttam Ghosh. She also stresses that wraps, drapes and ponchos are must haves in the current winter wardrobe.

Cardigans, cowl neck sweaters and fleece jackets in vibrant colours are the latest offerings from Westside. The retail chain had brought in more stocks to combat the demand, taking last winter as a marker, but had to offer a 50 per cent discount on winter wear in December. ?Last year was really chilly and we had anticipated much the same kind of weather pattern this time as well,? says Amit Dharap, manager operations Westside.

Owing to the rise in minimum temperatures in December, however, most outlets registered a much lower sales growth than expected. ?We have registered a sales growth of only five to six per cent in the winter wear section, as opposed to a growth of 20 per cent we had hoped for,? says R.S. Rekhi, head of operations (East), Pantaloons, also offering a hefty discount on winter wear.

Sales, however, are picking up steadily and look likely to peak when the wedding season draws nearer. ?Woollens form an integral part of a winter wedding trousseau and we are expecting the rush to go on till early February,? says Misra from Shoppers? Stop.

Weddings are not the only festive mark on the calendar for Calcuttans to warm up to woollens, though. ?This time, the Pujas and Diwali were in October-November and people have been buying light woollens ever since,? says Dharap from Westside.

The repertoire changed a little during Christmas and New Year, when the emphasis was on formal and partywear. ?We have a wide range of polynosic suits for men which sold well during the party season,? says Sudipto Banerjee, store manager, Blackberry?s, in City Centre. Woollen blazers and polywool suits were also among the pop picks during that time.