The one artistic shopping destination in the capital city of India, Dilli Haat...! 

Delhi is my all-time favorite city to visit, at least once in a year, because I'm a Shopaholic and the capital city of India is one of the best destinations to shop in the country. The beauty of Delhi is, it welcomes its visitors to shop in various ways and it has always hosted various types of shoppers. For example, ChandiniChowk is the destination famous for bridal shoppers, Sarojini Nagar is famous for cheap and affordable wholesale shopping, Palika Bazaar is famous for its wide range of textiles and there are many more. But there is only one place, which is confined to shop from vendors belong to various places of the country, who sell a various range of products to all types of shoppers and that is none other than, the popular "Dilli Haat" exhibitions.

There are a few more "Dilli Haat" places in the city, but the one which is in INA is the most popular. And also the bigger one which is hosting more than two hundred stalls inside the premises of Dilli Haat. INA is one defense place where it is always surrounded by the police, tight security, and other defense officials. Hence, this place is the safest spot for any shopper regardless of Nationality. Most foreigners visit this place to shop for various products which spill various cultures and traditions of the country.

India is a country with 29 states and too many cultures and traditions. The art and architecture factor in this country is inexplicable. Hence, various kinds of artisans, architectures, craftsmen, painters, sculptors, artists make their living based on their art, which specifies their respective culture and tradition belong to the place of their birth. "Dilli Haat" is that one place, which makes all these artists come together to show their skills and art, in the form of products and services. Hence, this place allows vendors to sell their art to all the customers who love various types of art in the form of clothes, accessories, footwear, interiors, furnishing, decorating items, including food too.

As a part of my birthday vacation, where I planned to celebrate artistically, I spared my whole day to roam, eat and shop around "Dilli Haat" till evening. It was a fantastic experience with a lot of memories and shopping material. Indeed, this time, I was not behind clothing and accessories, but behind collecting souvenirs in the art forms of various states in India. Hence, I have shopped interior decorating material to decorate my home. But, it wasn't easy for me to select those items from the whole range of arts that were exhibited in that place and struggling with the budget was another big problem.

Soon after you get down from your cab or auto, you will find a huge place with a serene atmosphere welcomes you inside the Dilli Haat. If you come by metro, you should drop at INA station, where a person can interchange from one line to another line. Follow the route arrows and you can find Dilli Haat right beside the exit gate of INA station. If you are a foreigner, you need to spend 100 rupees to enter. Yes, it is a paid entrance for even Indians too, 30 Rs for adults and 20 Rs for children. Hence, keep your cash handy to make some expenses.

Many people find this place a bit expensive, but not every vendor sells only the expensive material. If you have a little patience to look around and if you can bargain, you can have a handful of shopping bags in two thousand rupees. So, be smart while you shop at this place. And also, please keep the efforts of an artist to make a particular art before buying it or bargaining it for lower prices. Because the art you see here makes you spellbound. You should have some artistic sense before you step in. And, if you are an artist, trust me, you will fall in love with this place. The art here is exquisite.

A person can find tribal art, folk art, Kashmiri art, Rajasthani miniature art, Gujarati art, Odisha art, Kerala art, and many types of art forms belong to various states in India. You can find beautiful silver articles, handmade bags, leather goods, antique jewelry, polished jewelry, clay crafts, bamboo crafts, paintings of Rajasthani and Kashmiri art, Mughal art, Pashmina shawls, South Indian sarees, Jaipuri Bandhinis, scarves, clothes, handmade items, decorative items like hangings, wall posters, lamps, statement pieces of art, Mojris, Footwear from Rajasthan, Punjab, Jute crafts, Spices, tea leaves, coffees, food items, and many more. You will surely find items which you might haven't seen to date.

Not only the products, but also services like making portraits, sketches, paintings in front of you, playing songs with musical instruments, preparing traditional food of various states, various dance form performances belong to various states. Simply, all the artists here make you experience every form of art belongs to every place in India. "Dilli Haat" is a blend of exhibiting all art forms. If you are an artist, you will cherish it forever. If you are a shopping lover, you end up spending all your savings, because you cannot resist beautiful and gorgeous art here.

Especially, if you are a food lover, you will enjoy this place. Because literally, this place allows you to test your taste buds with various delicious and tummy-filling recipes of Indian states and cultures. You can find various stalls belongs to various state names where you can eat food belong to that particular state. Strictly confined to a person to have the food belong to one particular state, the place is equally divided for various vendors belong to various states. You can find food stalls of Tamilnadu, Andhrapradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharastra, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Manipur, Nagaland, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan and many more. Being a south Indian, I opted for Punjabi and Maharashtrian food, because I love them both. Hence, I ended up having Methi Kulcha and Sabudhana Khichdi. Like me, you can taste whatever food you like belongs to whichever state in India.

What else, a person wants than a place which allows him/her to taste the food, to shop the clothing and footwear, to buy the arts and crafts, to explore various traditions of a country. This place is indeed an amalgamation of various arts of various states in India. And trust me, every single art is very special and exclusive. Every single artist is damn talented. I still can't forget the love an artist showered on me when I was crossing his stall. Being an androgynous fashion lover, I attracted his eyes and he called me and said that he wanted to give me a gift and hence, he painted a tiny royal elephant on one of my nails. He was a Rajasthani Miniature Painting artist. Everyone here is so welcoming and so appealing.

Yes, some of the arts are too expensive and some people quote over prices to overcome their renting expenses. Yes, all the artists here are allowed to exhibit their art for a particular period, say 15 days and they are charged accordingly to maintain their store which is allotted to them inside the premises. Hence, if you think that you are going to get the same art you liked when you visited, then you must keep in this mind, that those vendors are not permanent vendors. They keep on changing according to the cycle.

I have visited in the sunlight and the place looked so beautiful, clean and neat. The whole place is gorgeously spread with the rock flooring and tidily allotted the stalls for each vendor to exhibit their arts and crafts. The place is filled with large trees and plants which adds the greenery effect for Dilli Haat. You will feel, totally a different and disconnected world inside Dilli Haat. Because, unlike Delhi roads, this place is clean, non-polluted, uncrowded, safe and entertaining. Most importantly, the artistic vibes, this place spreads are unimaginable. So, when you visit the capital city, next time. You must visit this place. This place is a pure merge of all kinds of shopping destinations in Delhi and most importantly, you may run out of time, to visit every store. So, always spare a whole day for this place to enjoy the art and artists of India.