Bhubaneswar, Aug. 17: Twelve-year-old Siddhartha Sarangi has been saving up for Raksha Bandhan for the past six months. He wants to surprise his sister with a gift and expects a nice rakhi from her too.
A fan of cartoon character Doraemon, the Class VII student has special expectations. "I'm excited about tomorrow. It is a special day. I hope my sister ties a nice-looking rakhi on my wrist. I am a fan of Doraemon, and have already given her a hint of the rakhi I want."
Siddhartha has bought a special gift for his sister. "She is fond of video games and I have a surprise in store for her," he said with a grin.
Brothers and sisters all over the city are looking forward to the special occasion. It's time to sweep sibling rivalry under the carpet and have a good time together.
It's the usual affair for Soumya Dash, 19, to fight with her brother on the smallest pretext. But tomorrow is different. "Raksha Bandhan is a special day. I'm always fighting with my younger brother, who is in Class X, but we make a pact every year to patch up for this one day," said the BSc student of Maharshi College. Soumya has bought a rakhi for her brother that has a 3D picture of Lord Jagannath on it. "I have bought a special rakhi, so I also expect a special gift from my brother too," she said.
Like most teenagers, Akanksha Padhi, 15, looks forward to this day every year. "I have already bought the rakhi for my elder brother and I hope it lives up to his expectations." Akanksha has great expectations from her brother, too. After all, her brother has started earning. "A great handbag will do. I hope he reads my mind," she said hopefully.
Whether her brother reads her mind or not remains to be seen. But, shopkeepers are doing their best to anticipate the demands of customers before the big day for siblings.
There seems to be something for everyone. For the little brothers, the market is flooded with rakhis with cartoon motifs. Rakhis with popular cartoon characters such as Spiderman, Bal Ganesh, Pokemon and Angry Birds are favourites.
"Rakhis with characters from the popular Harry Potter series are also available. With the release of the latest Harry Potter book recently, they are selling well," said Minakshi Sahoo, a homemaker.
The price of these rakhis ranges from Rs 5 to Rs 250, depending on the craftwork. Pure silk threads that are considered auspicious are available from Rs 30 onwards.
A number of kiosks have come up in areas such as CRPF Square, Saheed Nagar, Chandrasekharpur and Raj Mahal Square among others. Jewellery shops are selling silver rakhis that cost between Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 depending on the craftsmanship.
Online shopping is big too. Online portals are offering customised bands with special printed messages or with pictures of the brother and sister. "I visited many kiosks in the city, but the designs did not suit my needs. So, I surfed a few websites and found customised rachis. I bought one that has a picture of me and my brother," said Nishita Nayak, 27-year-old bank officer.
Young entrepreneur Nidhi Garg has created a special eco-friendly gift collection that brothers can give to their sisters.
"My aim is to promote the idea of investing in eco-friendly gifts," said Nidhi and added that orders for her stuff can be placed through her Facebook page.
