Come Friday, every week the Old Trunk Road running parallel to the arterial G.S.T. Road, comes alive with hundreds of vendors competing to pitch their sheets on the ground at the famous Pallavaram Sandhai.
The age-old Sandhai (weekly market), whose exact period is a subject of conjecture but believed to be more than 150 years old, has earned a reputation for “selling everything under the sun”. The thriving Sandhai has become an attractive option for shoppers, despite the online shopping boom, not only for household buyers but also for small-time vendors coming from other places.
The Sandhai resembles an open exhibition ground selling groceries, food, clothing, furniture, antiques, electrical equipment, and pets. The market has stalls selling exotic birds, pedigree pups, rabbits, doves and fighter roosters for sale.
Babu of Tiruvottiyur has been selling home-made mittai (candy) for the past 10 years in the market. His candy mounted on a clap-trap dancing woman is a big hit with children.
Balaji, who has a stall dealing in love birds, said the market has been growing bigger with several new vendors coming in.
The liveliness of the Sandhai is reflected in a documentary produced by The Kutty Documentary channel. The documentary on YouTube is presented by U.S. Madhan Kumar, showcasing the vendors’ perspective of doing business in the Sandhai along with the happiness of being an entrepreneur. The earthiness of the bazaar and its place in a quintessential city that has retained Madras in parts, is beautifully brought out through the documentary. After all, the Sandhai is hardy, it has survived despite several attempts to close it.
