A walk on the flowery aisle

A sneak peek into Delhi’s Flower Market in Ghazipur that comes to life before the crack of dawn and winds up daily by 10am

By 4am , the phoolwallahs (flower sellers) of Ghazipur Flower Market are up and about, ready to kickstart another day of business. Before the riotously colourful flowers unfurl , one can hear the cacophony of hawkers, workers and customers from afar. As we walk towards the market on a cloudy morning, the chaotic ambience pops up.

The market is divided into small lanes criss-crossing each other; every shop and corner adorned with heaps of floral varieties and fragrances. Flower petals, stems and leaves lay strewn all over the pathways as we hop over water puddles and grime in that crowd. A swarm of bees hovers while a variety of birds swiftly sift through flowers in search of insects to pick. 

Be it decor for parties and weddings, bouquets to gift, vase displays at hotels and homes or floral decorations at religious places, the Ghazipur flower market is one-stop destination for every type of client in Delhi-NCR. Orchids, marigolds, lilies, roses, carnations, lotuses, anthuriums land in the flower market from Maharashtra, Bengaluru, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, while exotic flowers such as cymbidium and heliconia are imported from Thailand, the pin cushion from Holland, and protia, banksia and hydrangea come from South Africa. Artificial silk flowers from China and Vietnam are also available in every type of colour imaginable.

The mandi was earlier located at Connaught Place and then shifted to Ghazipur in 2011,” informs 50-year-old flower seller Rishi Kumar Chauhan. Before 1997, Delhi’s flower market was scattered in different areas, including Mehrauli, Chandni Chowk, Lado Sarai Mandi and Fatehpuri before a few families got together to bring the flower business to a more permanent address in Connaught Place. As the market kept expanding and the flower business did well, to ease the operations, it was relocated to Ghazipur. Today, the flower market is a consolidated business zone with all stakeholders coming under one roof. Spread over 1.5 acres, it is close to the Ghazipur Fruits and Vegetable Market.

There is some kind of order inside the flower market that makes it easy for the customer to locate the product of his or her choice. The territorial divisions are marked with flower baskets made of cane sold only at the entrance; the licensed shops with cut flower varieties and cold storage are positioned at the centre of the market while shops that sell flowers and petals of marigold and rose in bulk are located at the back. On the periphery of the market are small stalls put up by various farmers and small shop owners.

From the gigantic weighing machines in the big shops stocked with different varieties of flowers to small temporary stalls which display their variety of flowers on canvas sheets on the floor, the marketplace is an inclusive hub for all.

Hemraj Saini at 64, is committed to a rigorous routine daily. The marigold wholesaler says, “Farmers from different parts of the country begin their journey with their truck loads of flowers, anywhere between 10pm and 2am —depending on where they are coming from— to reach the market before sunrise.

The flower market starts receiving the produce from 2am onward. “Once the supplies arrive, the wholesaler or manager takes account of the quantities each truck brings in, while the workers get busy unloading the produce and arranging them in the designated shops to entice customers as the day breaks,” says Hemraj. By 10am, the market winds up and the entire premise is deserted and falls silent.

The flower market has its share of challenges as well, say the traders. The market is driven by weather, seasonal changes and climatic conditions. The best days of business are the wedding seasons and religiously important dates, says Kailash Thakur, 52, who runs a shop in the mandi..

“There are lots of fluctuations in our business. When the summer temperatures soared last month and crossed 50 degrees C in Delhi, it affected the life of the produce procured. Transportation also becomes difficult in extreme temperatures,” he says, adding, “many farmers and sellers here have also not been able to recover from debts during the Covid lockdown. The flower market took a severe hit and faced huge losses.”

Rishi Kumar Chauhan expresses his concern over the dearth of sales, “It is not easy for us to make a profit in this business; I feel the culture of gifting flowers is no longer as vibrant as it used to be. People are also shifting to online orders. Our sales are now mostly dependent on wedding decor,” he says.

Agriculture consultant, Sabha Bahadur says most farmers own poly houses which allow them to grow all kinds of flowers in all seasons so that they do not remain dependent on seasonal changes for their produce. He says, “Preserving the flowers in cold storage helps maintainthe floral health and ensures a longer shelf life.” For this purpose, several flower sellers and farmers own cold storages both within and outside the flower market .”

Despite challenges, those in the business of flowers do not give up. “The flower market operates as a single large unit. The local women workers sew garlands, workers organise the produce and attend to customers, managers keep the accounts, or shop owners supervise the operations. We are one big family daily scripting the story of fragrances, colours and happiness. It is a soothing experience for us,” smiles Hemraj.

Published - September 19, 2024 11:31 pm IST