Imported perfumes woo shoppers in Old City

HYDERABAD: “More than 200 varieties of scents are made from flowers,” says Faisal Siddique of Berket and Sons Perfumers, a store near Mozamjahi Market, adding, “The most popular ones are Jannatul-firdous, Majmuah, Firdous, Gulab, Pahadi Phool, Mogra, Chameli, Kacchi kali and Hina.” But, where do this variety of perfumes come from? “All of these perfumes are imported from a district, Kannauj in Uttar Pradesh and some scents like Bakhoor and Dahanal Ood are imported from Saudi Arabia,” explains Siddique, adding, “These perfumes are transported only in aluminium containers so that they retain the fragrance.” Ittar is sold in glass containers of three sizes --- pav tola, adha tola and tola and are usually seen piled up in front of these stores. The ones imported within India would cost Rs 30, Rs 60 and Rs120 for 25 ml, 50 ml and 100 ml respectively, whereas with respect to the ones from Saudi Arabia, the cost may go up to Rs 200 per tola. “I love firdous. But, one precaution to be taken while applying this perfume is that it should always be applied with your palms and not with a cotton, as it leaves a stain on your clothes,” reveals Sheikh Feroz, an auto driver.“We usually buy a lot of fragrances during the month of Ramzan,” he adds.Apart from an array of perfumes, these stores also sell scented hair oils and incense sticks. Despite the variety available, there is a large demand for one particular rose flavoured incense sticks called as Masala Agarbatti.“We also sell surma that is specially imported from Bombay. This particular surma is made by grinding the rocks of a mountain called Koyatur in Madina,” explains Siddique. Talking about business and profits in this trade, Siddique says, “It is very unpredictable. We make huge profits during Ramzan. But now, there are days when we make Rs 1,000 per day or sometime we even earn Rs 5,000 per day.” A lot of these fancy containers that are used to store perfumes are imported from China and Iran. People even buy them to present as gifts on any occasion. These stores even sell hookah containers and flavours.According to Siddique, there is a huge demand for them as there are many hookah parlors have come up in the city. “I bought an attardan with my mother-in-law’s favourite scent as a gift for on her birthday last month. She loved the gift,” says Syed Muneera, a housewife.