The China Shop 
The China Shop on the main Mehrauli Gurgaon road has a stock of artistically crafted original porcelain pieces from China. The pieces are so artistically crafted and well selected that one instantly falls in love both with their workmanship and the collection.

The man and the brain behind the shop and one of the major importers of these finely picked pieces from China, Rakesh Anand recently organized a fair at the Agha Khan Hall wanting people to develop a taste for these pieces.

Being very choosy about his clientele he wants to sell only to those who have an eye for this art form. It was on a business trip to China, that he noticed these porcelain bone china and resin works with intricate designs, being manufactured in large factories scattered all over China.

He brought back a few products for himself, but seeing the appreciation that these pieces invited he felt encouraged to import them and sell them in the domestic market at reasonable prices. Rakesh claims his USP is the price.

I remember asking him why he had opened this outlet in an out of the way place, quietly tucked away in one corner of the road on way to Gurgaon. Pat came the reply "because I don't want to be a part of the crowd…."

This shop has a large variety of collectibles such as the fengshui coins tied with a red thread, which are said to bring in money when placed with the yang side facing up in the cash box, to wind chimes which drive away the negative influences in one's life. Then there are the gorgeous resin table lamps in gold and silver, porcelain baskets, tea and coffee sets, laughing Buddhas and the copper tortoise riding piggy back on the thousand fengshui coins (for Rs 2000) to bring good luck and prosperity to your world.

There is a pair of royal elephants (Rs 11,000 each) exquisitely carved with typical Chinese motifs. Each item is unique as Rakesh rightly points out, "It creates a space for itself when you walk back home with it." The wrought iron garden table (the latest in his collection) with a marble top is tagged at Rs 3000 whereas the small mandarin ducks are priced at Rs 1300.

The clientele for the shop includes ministers, celebrities and the interior designers. The China Shop in keeping with its name has managed to bring for the discerning eye the best of Chinese porcelain. It is a shop for the art connoisseurs, a place where life gets reintroduced to a new kind of lifestyle of the fragile but beautiful world of porcelain.

- ARCHANA DEV