KSanthanam, a 65-year-old Mumbai resident, is adamant about his choice of umbrellas. The conservative gentleman will settle for nothing less than the 26-inch long black one from Ebrahim Currim & Sons, a 146-year-old establishment in Mumbai that makes umbrellas under the Stag brand. “The folded umbrellas are for babies,” he says.

Unlike him, however, his granddaughter has a penchant for different kinds of umbrellas and buys a new one every alternate year. Saugata Roy, 34, and a resident of south Calcutta, is equally fussy about these shades. Just the other day, he spent three hours in a suburban mall looking for a rodless umbrella for his four-year-old son.

Umbrellas today are no longer merely a means of protection from the rain or the sun. They are more of a fashion statement. Aziz Currim, who heads Ebrahim Currim & Sons, points out that the humble black umbrella has undergone several modifications. Kalinath Dutt, a fourth generation partner in Mohendra Dutt and Sons, an umbrella manufacturing company in Calcutta, endorses his point, adding, “Today, the consumer is more than willing to pay for quality umbrellas which are also fancy.”

The monsoon is the season when the sale of umbrellas is at its peak. Walk down the Fancy Market area in Kidderpore in Calcutta and you will be spoilt for choice. Ditto for the Fort area in Mumbai and New Market in Calcutta. The varied shapes, sizes, designs and colours are all the more tempting because of the price tags attached to these umbrellas. Ranging from Rs 60 to Rs 500, they give value for money. At Mohendra Dutt and Sons, sales go up by 20 per cent every year. On the other hand, K.C. Paul ? the 65-year-old one-stop shop for umbrellas in Calcutta ? sells more than 100 umbrellas daily at this time of the year.

Over the past few decades, the umbrella has undergone a quiet makeover. In the past, they were more of a status symbol. Only those belonging to upper castes used umbrellas to shield themselves from the sun and the rain.

That is why the earliest of umbrellas were made of wood and silk. But with the arrival of the British, black umbrellas with their long black handles made an appearance. Even then, the material used for the umbrellas was imported from European countries.

In the late 1970s, umbrellas had spokes on the outside. By the mid-1980s, the silver lining inside the umbrellas made its appearance and thereafter it has been rapidly changing form and colour, with more and more innovations being introduced year after year.

Dutt highlights an interesting difference in the colours of umbrellas used in the East and West. “While in European countries, light colours are preferred, in India people go for dark colours,” he observes.

Umbrellas were meant for keeps and unless they got lost or broke accidentally, one didn’t think of buying a new one. But today the mindset has changed as the market is flooded with reasonably priced umbrellas with new designs.

So while Shruti in Mumbai prefers the three-fold umbrella, her mother is comfortable with a printed two-fold one. Both Currim and Dutt also manufacture five-fold umbrellas that fit into one’s trouser pocket. Currim’s latest offering is an anti-wind umbrella, which ensures that umbrellas do not turn inside out in gusty winds.

However, manufacturers like Currim warn that the cheap imported umbrellas from China do not last for more than a month. “Such umbrellas often use inferior quality spokes and thick material like polyester which is not very durable,” cautions Currim. That way, customers who wish to save money by buying such umbrellas, often end up spending more.

So next time it rains, make sure you are equipped to beat the rains with a fancy but dependable umbrella.

where to buy

Mohendra Dutt & Sons 3, Narendra Sen Square Calcutta ? 700009

Ebrahim Currim & Sons 42-48, S. Gandhi Marg Mumbai ? 400002

K.C.Paul’s wholesale outlet 82, Pandit Purshottam Rao Street Burra Bazaar, Calcutta Retail outlets at Ballygunge and Beadon Street