India GOShopping in Auroville
Auroville has no bazaar. Shopping here means buying what the township's own units make: incense and fragrances, hand-dyed and handloom clothing, paper goods and crafts. The quickest way to see most of it in one place is the three boutiques at the Visitors Centre and Kalki; the more rewarding way is to go to the workshops themselves.
One stop: the Visitors Centre boutiques and Kalki
The Visitors Centre has three boutiques for Auroville products: La Boutique d'Auroville, Mirra Boutique and a Kalki counter. Between them they sell incense, clothing, tableware, jewellery, furnishings and aromatherapy products, plus organic herbal syrups, dried fruit and cereal products made in Auroville. The Seagull Bookshop there stocks books on Integral Yoga, Indian culture and Auroville itself, and New School Crafts sells small items such as incense, soap and oils.
Kalki is the shop most people mean when they say they bought something in Auroville: hand-dyed and block-printed clothing in strong, flat colours, incense, essential oils, soaps, jewellery and handmade-paper stationery, most of it from the township's own workshops. Its main store is on the Auroville road at 44 MG Road, Kottakuppam.
Maroma is Auroville's best-known fragrance maker. It began in the late 1970s as Encens d'Auroville, a single line of incense with twelve scents, and now makes incense, candles, essential oils, perfumes and body care. Its products are sold at Kalki and the Visitors Centre. Maroma is a member of the World Fair Trade Organization.
Buy from the makers
These are working units, not shops first: message ahead about opening days and workshops.
Upasana Design Studio: handloom clothing
A fashion studio founded in 1997 that builds its clothing on hand-woven and hand-worked Indian textiles, with several lines tied to long-running social and craft-revival projects. The studio and its boutique are inside the township and open to visitors, so you see cloth, samples and people at work, not only the finished rail. Upasana.
WellPaper: baskets from old newspapers
A women's enterprise in Kottakarai village, started in 2005 to rebuild livelihoods after the 2004 tsunami; WELL stands for Women's Empowerment through Local Livelihood. Newspapers are rolled into tight rods and coiled into baskets, bowls, coasters, jewellery and papier-mâché figures. You can watch the work, buy from the table or book an introductory class, approximately ₹650–750. WellPaper.
Auroville Bamboo Centre: bamboo design
Founded in 2007 as a sister project of the Mohanam community centre, it trains young people from the villages around Auroville as bamboo craftsmen and tests bamboo in housing, furniture, interiors and everyday objects. Visitors come for the display-and-sales area and for hands-on workshops. It is a working campus, so message ahead. Bamboo Centre.
Before you buy
Check the name. A few shops in the Pondicherry and Auroville area use the prefix "Auro" in their names but have no connection with Auroville. If you want something made in the township, buy at the Visitors Centre, Kalki or the units themselves.
Pondicherry branches. La Boutique d'Auroville and Kalki also have branches in Pondicherry, useful if you are staying in town.
Hands-on instead of shopping. Several of these units teach: WellPaper's basket class, the Bamboo Centre's courses and more are collected under workshops.
FAQ
What can you buy in Auroville?
Things made in its own units: Maroma incense and fragrances, hand-dyed and handloom clothing from Kalki and Upasana, baskets and papier-mâché from WellPaper, bamboo objects, and organic syrups, dried fruit and cereals.
What are the best places for shopping in Auroville?
The three boutiques at the Visitors Centre and Kalki for the widest range in one place; Upasana, WellPaper and the Bamboo Centre to buy directly from the makers.
Where can I buy Maroma incense?
Maroma's products are sold at Kalki and at the Visitors Centre, and through other retailers in India and abroad.
Is every shop with "Auro" in its name part of Auroville?
No. Auroville warns that some outlets in the Pondicherry and Auroville area use the "Auro" prefix without any connection to the township.
Sources (6)
Facts checked: 15 October 2026. Prices and hours are approximate; check locally.
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