Thrissur is a great place to pick up distinctive Keralan crafts . The main shopping area is on the Round; on Round West, the Kerala State Handicraft Emporium specializes in wood, while a few doors along, a small branch of Khadi Gramodyog sells a limited range of hand-loom cloth. A far better selection of hand-loom can be found in Co-optex at the top of Palace Road (a one-minute walk from Round East). At Chemmanur's , Round South, near the Elite Hotel , you'll find the usual carved wooden-elephant-type souvenirs, and, on the ground floor, a high-kitsch Aladdin's Cave of nodding dogs, Jesus clocks, Mecca table ornaments and parabolic nail-and-string art. Sportsland , further west on Round South, aside from sports equipment, also sells crudely painted wooden toys, such as buses and cars. Alter Media at Utility Building, Nehru Bazaar, Nayarangadi is a small but interesting bookshop, devoted to women's studies. Cosmos Books , on Round West, is a treasure trove of frilly novels, die-hard academic criticism and books on art, drama and culture; you can even buy the latest edition of Vogue - at a price.

 

Kuruppam Road, which leads south towards the railway station from the western end of Round South, is one of the best places in Kerala to buy bell-metal products, particularly oil lamps made in the village of Nadavaramba, near Irinjalakuda. Nadavaramba Krishna & Sons and Bell-metal Craft both specialize in brass, bronze and bell metal. Lamps cost Rs80-25,000, and "superfine" bell metal is sold by weight, at over Rs250 per kilo. Continuing south on Kuruppam Road to the next junction with Railway Station Road, you'll find a number of small shops selling cheap Christian, Muslim and Hindu pictures etched on metal, and places that supply festival accessories, including umbrellas similar to those used for Puram.