Rakhis in Burrabazar...

... and in a shopping mall

The rakhi is going places — from the bylanes of Burrabazar and neighbourhood stores to the retail racks in malls and virtual shops.

“There are just two days to go and sales are down by 25 per cent compared with last year. With malls stocking rakhis for almost every budget, who will take the trouble to come here?” rues Raj, at the Raj Rakhis stall in Burrabazar.

That tradition is bowing to trend is evident from the rush for rakhis at City Centre or Forum, Mani Square or South City in the run-up to Saturday’s festival. “Last weekend, around 250 people dropped in at our standalone store on Sarat Bose Road, while at each of our stores in the four malls the footfall was no less than 800,” says Saurav Arora, a partner with Archies Gallery, stocking a rakhis and gifts.

If the comfort factor is luring many a rakhi shopper to large-format spaces, it is also prompting some to stay at home and say it with a click. Cashing in on the distances between brothers and sisters are online shopping sites. At Sifymall, a Rakhi hamper comes with a three-inch brass Ganesh murti, a nine-inch brass puja thali with all the necessary ingredients, a greeting card and a fancy rakhi. “There is a 70 per cent rise in transactions over last year,” says Arun Naikar, the head of e-commerce at Sifymall.com. “Sixty per cent of the orders are from abroad. The average spend is Rs 500. Clubbing gifts, like an iPod with a rakhi, has also been a hit,” he adds.

The rakhi has not only vaulted the digital divide but also barriers of community and custom. The traditional sibling thread has now grown to symbolise the bond between relatives and friends. Those manning jazzed-up retail racks reveal that the bhaiya-bhabhi rakhis have been selling well this year and students are starting to treat Rakshabandhan as “something of a Friendship Day”.

“The demand for rakhis has increased this year by 20 per cent,” says Shrikant Mohta of Shree Rakhis, a supplier to various retail chains. “The rakhi has become more accessible and attractive, overall awareness has grown, and more migration means more overseas orders.”