Kolkata’s Durga Puja shopping season has gathered pace, with malls and traditional markets drawing heavy crowds three weeks before the festival and retailers reporting brisk sales across apparel, footwear, jewellery and food outlets.
Sunday saw shoppers filling malls and bazaars across the city, with trial rooms and billing counters busy for much of the day. Retailers said the shopping rush could intensify next weekend after salaries are credited, adding to expectations of stronger festive demand.
At Acropolis Mall, Subhadip Basu, corporate general manager for retail and hospitality at Merlin Group, said the Puja shopping spree had gained momentum. He said the heaviest crowds were being seen at apparel and footwear stores, jewellery outlets and the food court.
The rush was also visible in neighbourhood markets. At Hindusthan Park, one shopper told The Telegraph that he spent around 30 minutes waiting outside a trial room before buying two shirts. The account reflected the pressure on store facilities as shoppers moved through outlets with families and friends.
In Gariahat, the evening crowd was large enough for a clothing store to extend its closing time. Dipak Biswas, an employee at New Punjabi House, said the shop was now closing at 9pm instead of its earlier 8.30pm schedule because of the rush. Souvik Kar, a 36-year-old shopper from Garia, said his family had begun shopping around 4pm and planned to spend the next four to five hours in the market.
Retailers said the current demand was not limited to browsing. An official of a department store chain, who declined to be named because he was not the company’s official spokesperson, said the conversion rate was increasing as the festive season approached. According to the official, most people entering stores were prepared to buy.
At Hatibagan, shoppers occupied stretches of Bidhan Sarani and traffic moved slowly as stores called out discounts. Ratan Saha, who runs a women’s wear shop, said his store had sold around 40 pieces of three-piece salwar suits by 4pm and that business had remained steady through the afternoon.
The crowds also point to the continuing role of physical markets in Kolkata’s festive economy, even as many shoppers purchase similar goods online during the rest of the year. Rajlakshmi Chakraborty, who handles digital sales and operations at Legacy of Bhojraj on Rashbehari Avenue, said e-commerce offered convenience, variety and home delivery, but many people spending Durga Puja in Kolkata still preferred to shop in person.
For shoppers, the markets remain more than retail destinations. Nita Ganguly, 59, said visiting Hatibagan for Puja shopping was a family tradition that had continued across generations. The city’s current retail rush is therefore unfolding through both organised malls and older market streets, with store timings, pedestrian movement and traffic patterns already responding to the approaching festival.
