Kamal World (Cosmetics)

To pass through the dark and dingy alleys of General Bazaar and enter into the concrete walls of Kamal World is akin to entering an air-conditioned coach from the general compartment. Not that Kamal World is air-conditioned; it only makes you feel so, thanks to the heat of General Bazaar. Established as Kamal Watch Company in 1969, this business group is now accepted as Kamal World (it was initially called Kamal Ladies World) among the local residents of Secunderabad.

The ground floor of the superstore accommodates watches ranging from the regular Titan and Timex to Fossil, Police, Tissot and Citizen. The first floor is a combined segment for men and women, housing belts, wallets, handbags, men nightwear and perfumes.

The embellished handbags of Kamal World are worth a mention for their beads-woven design and reasonable prices (when compared to other stores). And since the locals of Secunderabad prefer a tiger-eye flaunting SRK or a brand called Amitabh over a Western perfume name, this super section offers the same, though it still squeezes in a few Western names like Cigar and Police.

On the second floor, which is the women's section, the division on your right covers a good range of accessories ranging from fancy, college wear kada (averaging Rs. 90) to funky junk jewelry. And although the dazzle of Western junk stuff that you would pick might not match with those of the BIG malls like Lifestyle and Hyderabad Central, by God, the prices would!

The charm of the store is the cosmetics section, which has products ranging from the Shahnaz Hussain collection to the popular international brand Lotus. The clothing area includes swimwear, lingerie and night wear. The last category is solely dedicated to the Indian style of jewelry - colorful stone-studded alluring bangles and not-so-heavy sets of necklaces with matching earrings.

With no outlandish decor and simple interiors, Kamal World still manages to grant its local residents a "Shopping At Prada" feel. And so, although the prices of the products available here are not always reasonable, especially with the neighboring markets like General Bazaar and Kathiawar (a similar store at a distance of two minutes from Kamal World) offering similar stuff at lower prices, Kamal World is still preferred. And Prada at Milan or Kamal World at Secunderabad, do we Hyderabadis really care?