Onam is not complete without the traditional sadhya, pookalam, and of course the mundu. All these form an integral part of the celebrations irrespective of whether the prices of ingredients are costly, whether the price of flowers is high, or whether the cost of the mundu has become expensive.

Kuthampully set mundu is the traditional attire that is worn by Keralites. There is a single piece and a two piece set mundu that is available in the market. Single piece is called the mundu and the other one is called the Neriyathu or Kavani.

This year it is learnt that many people who did not have the time to physically shop for the traditional mundu chose to purchase it online. All online stores assure speedy delivery of the order. Plus, the Cash on Demand option ensures consumers receive full payment security. This has prompted many Keralites shop for the mundu online.

There are about a dozen websites that allow people to purchase the traditional mundu from the comfort of their homes. One of the websites is offering free shipping of orders for customers who place orders worth more than Rs. 499.

A majority of the online websites offer their virtual customers a plethora of mundu options to choose from, depending on their budget preferences. There is the Kerala cotton set mundu with / without golden zari, available with / without designs. For the men there is simple dhoti and also dhotis with borders.

Final year post-graduate student Shruthi chose to purchase her mundu online for Onam as she did not have the time to visit the store and shop for one this year. “After college hours, I am busy working on my project. I was left with no time to physically visit a store and shop for Onam. One night I placed an order with Amazon. I am happy with the product.” she says. Like Shruthi there are many who made purchases online.

Pradeep Agarwal, Managing Director of Haryana Textiles, manufacturers and wholesale dealers of saris, says that he is happy with the mundu sales this season.

“We have been in the business of manufacturing and selling all varieties of saris and dress materials for the past 40 years. This Onam season we did good business.” he says.

The company also supplies saris to online portals. His son, Ashish Agarwal says that this year there were many orders from online portals for mundu saris.