‘Work in progress’ reads a note on one of the tables on which a curation of books welcomes visitors at Off The Shelf, Hyderabad’s new independent bookstore. It is not often that one learns of a bookstore opening, that too, an independent store rather than a retail chain. Sandwiched between Virat Kohli’s One8 Commune restaurant and True Black Coffee on the first floor of The Loft, which positions itself as a social hub in HITEC City, Off the Shelf is the labour of love of sisters Manasa and Meghna Gummi.
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Meghna is an architect and CEO of an infrastructure company and Manasa is a lawyer at a multinational company. Early this year, while discussing their love for books and bookstores, they got nostalgic about childhood visits to Walden to buy books and stationery. For the sisters, buying books online did not have the same charm. Rather than lament about the dearth of independent bookstores in the city, they got down to the business of opening one.
“We travelled to Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru to better understand the bookstore business and felt Hyderabad was lagging. While it might be true that the city would have had more bookstores if there was a demand from buyers, we also noticed that some booklovers would be eager to patronise bookstores if there were more options,” Manasa reasons. “Some of our friends told us that we were going back in time, to start a physical bookstore, in an age of audio books and e-readers. Nevertheless, we wanted to give it a try.”
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Interactive sessions
A factor that motivated the sisters to venture into the business was Manasa’s two-year-old son. She realised there is a dearth of options to inculcate the joy of reading in young children. “As the store evolves, we want to have a vibrant children’s section, conduct storytelling workshops and reading sessions.”
Manasa and Meghna Gummi | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
When they began looking for a location, they were particular about ample parking space, a design that allows natural light and a store layout that would make it an inviting hangout space. “Not only cafes and restaurants, a bookstore can also look cool,” Manasa laughs. She and Meghna wanted a space that would make visitors engage with the space rather than just buy and leave.
Off The Shelf, spread across 1800 square feet, has an origami paper art installation by Ankon Mitra on its ceiling. A colourful mural wall presents popular fiction characters, from Sherlock Holmes to Byomkesh Bakshi, and Matilda to characters of Malgudi Days and Persepolis, designed with the help of Hyderabad-based Hoozinc Art and Design Studio. The store was designed by Archi Wing Studio with inputs by Meghna.
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Collaborative curation
Off The Shelf opened its doors on August 24. In the first month, the sisters saw walk-ins from the corporate employees in the neighbourhood during lunch hours. “We have had people come in, take a few photographs and leave. But avid readers give us suggestions on what books they would like to see on our shelves, from philosophy to poetry. Our curation will be driven by a combination of factors — books that cater to the corporate sector for gifting, and what avid readers want for themselves,” shares Manasa.
A section of the mural wall at the store
This community-led stocking of books is something she and Meghna look forward to. The ‘work in progress’ placard indicates they are open to reader suggestions. Visitors are encouraged to walk through the store, look up recommendations put up by the store, and browse books while perched on a circular couch attached to one of the shelves or the dedicated reading table with high chairs.
For those looking beyond books, there are accessories from brands such as Nappa Dori, stationery from the Japanese label Midori and the Indian label Ekatra handmade.
Off The Shelf is a welcome addition to Hyderabad’s independent bookstore business, following Akshara Books and Luna Books.