It is that time of the year when sunglasses become synonymous with summer style. With summer already at its peak, people in the state capital are having a tough time braving the harsh rays.

This has led to the city markets being flooded with sunglasses or ?glares? as some like to call them. While, most people use them to protect the eyes, the fashionable prefer to incorporate them as style statements.

Like everywhere in India, where brand and desi go hand-in-hand, here too, local sunglasses available on roadside are no less a favourite among the people. Starting from a Rs 50 to Rs 10,000 onwards, sunglasses are here to stay as style statements, at least for the next few months.

Optica Capitol Hill: You name it they have it! The shop caters to a range of imported sunglasses with Ray Ban, Nike, Calvin Klein and Esprit among the favourites. Then there are the Indian names such as Edge, Scott, Spencer and Polo Club, which are brands mainly brought from Mumbai.

Salespeople maintain that the high-end line is mostly preferred by those who can afford it, and that excludes the youths, who go for the Indian brands, which are equally fashionable and ?funky?. Though admittedly the imported brands boast of better attention to detail and eye care.

If one thought that sunglasses were there to protect the eyes, think again. Take the example of the many Esprit lines: There are the sports glares, the urban active line and snow glasses. Though one simply has no use for the last one in Ranchi, but the sports line is popular here. With it, one can change the lens at will, and the cool thing is that they come with a facility that automatically deflects sweat. The urban active line has been developed especially for skaters, bikers and joggers. It suits almost all the requirements of a person living the urban lifestyle. There are also the regular feature of UV-ray protection, a must in Indian summers.

Music Galaxy, Main Road: If the sales personnel are to be believed, old is indeed gold, at least as far as fashion trends go. The retro-look that was flaunted by stars of yesteryear is back. More and more people are opting for the over-sized and huge glasses reminiscent of the sixties and seventies.

And they add, as always it is the youth that are the target customers. For them there are all the big brands like Calvin Klein, Armani, and Esprit, as well as the Indian brands to choose from.

And here?s a tip from the experts, who sell these stuff. Chuck the mundane hues and experiment with light greens, mercury, light ash, maroons and pinks this season, to match the outfits.

WISHLIST

(Imported brands)
Nike ? Rs 10,000 onwards
Calvin Klein ? Rs 5,000 onwards
Ray Ban ? Rs 3,200 onwards
Esprit ? Rs 1,700 onwards
(Indian brands)
Edge ? Rs 1,200 onwards
Scott ? Rs 750 onwards
Spencer ? Rs 750 onwards
Polo Club ? Rs 1,000 onwards

FIRST hand

A glassy guide to great vision

Here’s a tip to check whether the glasses are good enough: put on your sunglasses, and take a look in the mirror; if you can see your eyes, the lenses aren’t dark enough to screen out visible light.

Choose colours that will help you see true colours, that is grey, brown, or green. Avoid yellow or amber lenses since they make it hard to distinguish the traffic signal. Also as experts say opt for frames that are strong, sturdy as well as light. Wrap-around frames offer maximum protection and they are never out of fashion.