Mumbai: From origami paper to handmade varieties, it’s paper everywhere at Bora Bazar

Bora Bazar, named after the community of Bohra Muslims who first started their business here, sells an array of papers, some handmade varieties being sourced from Haryana and Jaipur. Prices vary according to the type of paper, but a coloured sheet of A4 paper costs around Rs 10 and the price of a sheet of handmade paper is around Rs 50.
Shah Mulji Lakhamshi and Co Cardboard is a store that has been operating in Bora Bazar for 60 years. Store owner Shah said, “All sorts of customers come to buy our paper and cardboard because we sell at wholesale prices. We see school students, architecture students and employees from printing companies the most.”

Bora Bazar’s old-world charm and variety appeals to its customers. Neha Munshi, a college student, said, “Craft and origami have been my hobbies for a long time and my mother would bring me here to buy paper when I was a child. I still come back to Bora Bazar because compared to buying online or at other stationery shops, everything is on display and there are many more special designs and types. Also, because not many people come here, the shopkeepers don’t mind me looking at many styles of paper before I decide what to buy.”

However, shop owners in Bora Bazar all tell a familiar story: Business isn’t what it used to be and their clientele has decreased significantly. Ambalal Purohit, owner of a store named Sun Enterprises that has been operating for 25 years, said, “Ten years ago, our store would be full of people. We wouldn’t even have time to stop because we were so busy. Nowadays, people barely come and the work isn’t as fun anymore.”

Different shopkeepers speculate various reasons for the decrease in traffic. Some attribute it to business moving online. Others simply credit the corner stationery stores that have started to stock niche types of paper that shops at Bora Bazar are famous for.

Earlier, when Bora Bazar was virtually the only place to buy patterned paper at attractive prices, it was popular with customers who would come even from the suburbs, shopkeepers say.