Theru Kadai…ku polama?!

 Quick commerce in its true sense. What if all of 99wholesale, meesho, and the likes, were to set up store in the same street, dotted next to each other? No sale announcements, no competition, pure sales, coupled with marketing. 

In all honesty, my online behaviour, for that matter, even browsing behaviour, had changed in anticipation of the shops that would come into play as a part of the Kalpathi Theru fervour. The tendency to add to cart and buy now had clearly been self-tamed. The words of Appa echoed in my head: Wait until the Theru shops arrive, I am sure you’ll get it in one of those shops, and you will have value for your money.”

And boom, beginning November, the streets were dotted with these shops, with every inch of real estate in the streets of Old & New Kalpathy, Chathapuram areas, being used for street-trade – of course, they had to leave enough space for the stars of the season – the 5 Chariots of the Heritage Village, that’s collectively known as Kalpathi, which also bears a  geographical sobriquet – “Ratholsava Nagari.” 

You could shop for fancy jewellery, ceramic and stone ware, bath & home accessories, export surplus cotton clothes, steel utensils, home decor, fashion accessories, particularly – bangles of various kinds – both glass and plastic, stationery, toys, balloons; bedspreads, a variety of pickles, confectionery that stole our hearts from back in the 80’s and 90’s, and a bazillion other set of things! 

Wooden toys and tiny steel toys that can be used for pretend and play, were adorable, very persuasively designed to capture the attention of people like me, perhaps!

Kalchetty, a common cookware, as the name suggests, is fully made of stone and is a classic, sustainable vessel, that helps retain heat, thereby reducing the consumption of cooking gas. It’s so popular, that our street bears the name – Kalchetty Street. Perhaps back in the days, this street was known for its kalchetty! Thus, the erstwhile Kalchetty is one of the best-sellers of the season!

With so many physical shops in and around the neighborhood, it’s humanly impossible to cover all of them in one go! We’d take turns to take a stroll around each area, every day – these shops usually last for about a good 3 to 4 weeks straight, open from around 9am until a little after midnight! What’s strolling around without popcorn, pori, boiled peanuts, cone and stick ice cream, after all! There is no dearth for food stalls – after all, what’s entertainment without food?!

Every Theru has the residents of Kalpathi agraharam anticipating to add something to their existing collection – “what did you buy for this Theru?,” is a common question when we bump into friends and family at these Theru kadais (Theru shops). 

Under the large pretext of The Kalpathi Theru, there is a thriving livelihood for hundreds of people who come from afar to set shops here in the streets of the Agraharam – no warehouses, everything is straight from the makeshift racks on the street, price and delivery time – extremely competitive, with dynamic food-based entertainment, coexisting amidst the cultural milieu of the Kalapathi Agraharam. 

These shops are such an integral part of the Agraharam streets, so much so that when the shopkeepers wind up to set shops in their next destination, there is a part of you that belongs to them – for they’ve contributed to your timepass and entertainment, at least commercially. As they wind up, you mentally thank them for the lessons they leave behind each year – of solidarity, price competitiveness, business continuity planning (they did excellent when it rained for few days), co-existence, warehousing skills, marketing and selling, negotiation, and most of all – adaptability to change, despite the odds!

Until next time…until the next Ratholsavam, it’s learning to wait with more of patience and less of impulsivity!