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| Outside Prakash Handicrafts |
It is unbelievably bizarre
how time flies. The weekend just bid goodbye and somehow I still cannot get
over the weekend before the last one I spent in Dehradun with my husband. I
have already mentioned in a post earlier how special Dehradun
is to my husband. Ever since we got married we have visited Dehradun a number
of times however it had always been with the family. So last to last weekend my
husband and I made an impromptu plan and reached Dehradun, just the two of us. However
this post is not about Dehradun. This post is about a little shop we discovered
during this trip that made it all the more worthwhile (I will deviate a little
from the shop here and there, please do not mind; the hills and the dun does
that to me :p)
After spending a lazy
Saturday, on Sunday we started for Landour. Landour is a small cantonment
town contiguous with Mussoorie, and is about 35 km from Dehradun in the
northern state of Uttarakhand. The twin towns of Mussoorie and Landour,
together are a reflection of British Raj-era hill station in northern India.
While we were exploring the town we walked up to the nearby Sisters bazaar also
known as the nurses’ dormitory.
The stroll
to Sisters bazaar was a beautiful experience. The surroundings, the cute little
houses and the whole feel of the place reminded me of my road trip to Lake
District in the UK. It was postcard perfect, so pretty and so romantic!
*lovestruck*
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now who wouldn't fall in love with this place?
My adorable darling |
Once
we reached Sisters bazaar it was hard for us to fathom the fact that it was a
market for it had shops less than the number of fingers in one hand. We had to
confirm from the locals if that was it and they were affirmative. We were just
about to take a U-Turn when we noticed this dainty handicrafts shop on the main
road. I saw a board outside it that read “Prakash Handicrafts”.
With
a slight chill in the air we were glad to have found some cosiness in that
little shop which offered a LOT! From silver jewelry to Tibetan wind chimes the
range was diverse. There were bed covers
for the house to stoles, warm jackets and kurtas to update the wardrobe for the
winters. The jackets and the kurtas are
the shop’s forte. They are hand woven in yak wool and pure wool.
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| now this looks warm |
The
shop was promoting all things natural. There was this adorable little tortoise
made out of pine needles which one can decorate at home or use for the coming
Diwali celebrations. However one thing that caught our eye was the range of
natural cosmetics this little shop was selling.
These
personal care products are manufactured by a foundation called SOS Organics.
Parul, the beautiful owner of the shop threw some light on the products and the
foundation. She informed us that the
foundation manufactures a wide range of products from food to herbal infusions
and cosmetics at a village industry based in Almora, Uttarakhand. The range reminded
me of “Fab India” products. The SOS
Organics’s products are all organic, grown in the Himalayas and free of
pesticides. The specific environmental conditions of the Himalaya, its unique
weather, rich and diverse mineral content of the soil and cosmic radiation are
such that the indigenous crop packs a multitude of medicinal properties. I was
simply fascinated listening to her.
Her
face lightened up while she was telling us about the authenticity of those
products which mirrored how she believed in them. She asked us to give the
products a try since there aren’t any side effects, so my dear husband asked me
to buy a few. Let me tell you they are brilliant.
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| SOS Organics' Products and the cute little tortoise i mentioned (pic courtesy: my dear husband) |
I
enquired if these products are available online and a smiling yes came as an answer.
The products have the Foundation’s website link on them so one can easily visit
the site and read more about their vision and other products (I did and it is
quite interesting). Here is a link to their website
https://www.sosorganics.com/.
Parul
was very honest when she asked us to buy the herbal infusion. She agreed that it
will not score too high on taste however it will do wonders for our body. I
chose to buy the Tulsi Rhododendron Herbal Infusion (I still have to try it
though, maybe post navratras). The packaging of the Cometic gift box that I
bought was ripped apart right when I reached home. I absolutely love the
Geranium face cream that I am using at night these days. Its fragrance is absolutely
refreshing and it keeps my skin so supple without making it oily.
We
were a bunch of garrulous people so we did not realise that we had spent almost
an hour and a half in the shop talking about nature, organic food, politics and
ofcourse Mr. Modi! I took a few pictures of the shop to share my experience with you all. Parul was too shy to get clicked hence she remains the mysterious pretty woman from the hills until you visit her (haha!). She was sweet to offer us a cup of tea/coffee but it was
getting late so we settled with chocolates.
It was wonderful to meet a lovely lady like
her amidst the utmost serene surroundings. Afterall very few people take the onus
of spreading awareness about a good cause and going organic is definitely one
of them. Not just for the nature but for your own body too (I mention the
latter because we humans are selfish beings and if being a little selfish can
indirectly do good to Mother Earth then I say why not?).
Do
visit this cute little shop on your next trip to the “Queen of Hills” to buy
something handmade crafted with love. The idea of this tiny place is to give back a lot to the society and underpriviledged in its own little ways. I will definitely make another trip.
While
the west is already embracing the idea of organic products and
the awareness is slowly increasing in the east too, it is time for us to give
them atleast a try. Little efforts and small changes in your own simple ways can
make a big difference.
P.S.:
If you have visited Prakash Handicrafts at Sisters Bazaar in Landour earlie or
have used SOS Organics’ products, do share your experience. Also if you buy
something in the future and like it, do leave a comment for the readers. Your
feedback means a lot to "my little diary".
