Thread by click: How Raksha Bandhan is moving from bazaars to browsers

Sellers echo this nostalgia. “Online is fast, but there’s no eye contact, no ‘Didi ye wala bhi dekho (Sister. see this one too)’. That charm is missing,” says a seller from Delhi

Written by Divyaja Kalyankar

Pune | Updated: August 9, 2025 00:55 IST

Many urban customers, especially those separated by distance or pressed for time, are increasingly turning to e-commerce platforms (File)

ONCE A festival of crowded markets, clinking bangles, and hurried rakhi selections under fairy-lit stalls, Raksha Bandhan today is just a few taps away. As more customers turn to digital platforms for purchasing rakhis, the festival is witnessing a transformation, not just in tradition, but in transaction.

But has convenience overtaken sentiment? And how are local rakhi sellers adapting to this change?

For years, Nisha Kapoor, 34, followed the same routine.

“I would go rakhi shopping with my mother and spend hours picking the right one for my brother. It was a ritual more than a task,” she says.
But this year, Nisha chose an Instagram-based small business to send a handcrafted rakhi directly to her brother in Canada. “It saved time and felt more personal. Plus, it came with a handwritten note and sweets.”

Like Nisha, many urban customers, especially those separated by distance or pressed for time, are increasingly turning to e-commerce platforms, niche gifting startups, and even WhatsApp-based local sellers to buy and deliver rakhis.

Offline sellers, however, feel the pinch. “Earlier, we would have at least 200 customers a day in the week leading to Raksha Bandhan,” says Vimla Devi, 58, who runs a seasonal rakhi stall in Pune’s Laxmi Road. “Now, barely 50 walk in. Many just take photos of our designs and order them online later.”

Still, some customers prefer the tactile experience. Arjuna Sharma, a 22-year-old college student from Bhopal, says, “I still buy my rakhis from the local market. I want to see, touch, and pick the one that feels right, not scroll and guess.”

To stay afloat, traditional rakhi makers are embracing the online model themselves. A shopkeeper from Model Colony shared, “We have started selling these rakhis online as well. One of our customers suggested we do this. Currently we don’t have much sales online, but are happy that we are growing.”

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Platforms like Meesho have also onboarded many such micro-entrepreneurs, allowing them to reach customers far beyond their locality.
Despite the shift, the heart of Raksha Bandhan remains emotional. “Whether I tie it on his wrist or send it through a courier, it’s my love that counts,” says Tanvi Deshpande, a working professional i. “That said, I do miss the joy of haggling with street vendors and buying colourful rakhi thalis.”

Sellers echo this nostalgia. “Online is fast, but there’s no eye contact, no ‘Didi ye wala bhi dekho (Sister. see this one too)’. That charm is missing,” says Ritesh Pande, who has been selling rakhis in Delhi’s Karol Bagh for over 20 years.

From traditional bazaars to online carts, the rakhi may have changed its journey, but not its purpose. As sisters continue to tie this timeless thread of love, the mode of purchase might shift, but the bond it represents remains unbreakable.

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