Big Bazaar Supercentre (Ameerpet)

If you have ever dropped by a Big Bazaar, a Pantaloon Group venture, you know it has always been, well, big. In terms of the sheer size of its sprawling outlets (this one has a generously-sized underground parking lot too), with respect to the quantity of stocks lining up its shelves and containers, in keeping with the growing profit this brand generates.

Now, the Pantaloon Group is thinking bigger. Which in actuality translates into the Big Daddy of Big Bazaar - the Big Bazaar Supercentres. There are reportedly only six such Supercentres in India, and only one in Hyderabad. And it works precisely as you are guessing right now - it is more of the usual Big Bazaar fare, with additional trimmings.

For the uninitiated, the "usual fare" includes branded, bulk displays of crockery, utensils, plastics, cosmetics, footwear, clothes for men, women and children, linen, accessories, fruits and vegetables, electronics and what-have-you, all available at slashed prices, or tagged with offers such as 'buy one, get one free' - hurrah for the middle-class masses again!

Of course, the attractive discounts are undercut by a real eyesore here - a filthy, artificial grass rug sits tackily at the center of the ground floor; it can even be spotted from the glass elevators running through this mammoth, 4-storey structure.

Nonetheless, this budget shopper's paradise is packed wall-to-wall with all the aforementioned paraphernalia (customers, too - mostly women) and further enhanced with a health zone (complete with a modestly-sized 'Tulsi' pharmacy), a beauty zone (more cosmetics, more brands), even an opticals section. There is also a fairly large jewelry store on the ground floor, 'Navaras' (it has also opened a showroom at Big Bazaar, Abids), tagged "your jewellery store". And then there is the furniture wing on ground zero where seemingly good quality furniture is created in-house and sold at prices that are competitive, though not cheap.

Clearly, you can now buy a bedsheet, a bed, some underwear, shaving cream, soft toys, a dozen apples and a mangal-sutra all under the same well-lit roof, during a single - albeit very strange - shopping spree.

Also read: Big Bazaar, Abids