Anil Book Corner: Variety unlimited

Delhi: Anil Book Corner
This roadside stall by the side of Plaza Cinema in Connaught Place boasts books on subjects as varied as fiction, travel, Indology and needle art. Kumar, the owner, has been manning the shop for 25 years. Brisk sales amount to around Rs 1,500 per day as the cinegoers rarely fail to stop by for a quick browse.

Alwar's Book Shop: Bargainer's Delight

Chennai: Alwar's bookshop
Bibliophiles hope that the civic authorities keep turning a blind eye to this sidewalk encroachment in Mylapore's Luz corner. R.K. Namalwar, a studio light-boy-turned-bookseller who is in his seventies, set up shop in 1950. Today, he has close to 50,000 books on subjects ranging from genetic engineering to contemporary American literature. The old man can be a tough bargainer. But, you can strike a good deal with his wife Mary.

Mumbai: The Second-Hand BookShop
At 526, Kalbadevi Road (right next to Edward Cinema) since 1905, this shop specialises in history and culture, though it also stocks books on medicine, law, art and literature. According to owner Sultan K. Vishram, the rarest and oldest books available sometimes vary on a monthly and even seasonal basis.

Selected Bookshop: A treasure trove

Bangalore: Select BookShop
An institution in Bangalore, this nondescript shop, tucked off Brigade Road, was set up in 1945. The number of books today, estimated between 60,000 to 70,000, eludes even the 72-year-old owner, K.K.S. Murthy. The eclectic collection ranges from potboilers to Tibetan religious treatises. The most valuable book-a 150-year-old Krishnaraja Wodeyar treatise-was offered Rs 4 lakh, which Murthy refused.

Kolkata: College Book Stall
A four-by-four hole in the wall on College Street, the mecca for book-lovers in the city, this shop was set up in 1937. The present owner, 47-year-old Amit Banik, stocks treasures like early 20th century editions of Das Kapital and 19th century litho of Fitzgerald's Omar Khayyam. Business isn't brisk nowadays, but Banik still manages to source some truly rare pieces now and then.

Bookworm

Tapan Mitra Member of West Bengal State Planning Board and former Chairman, Indal All through his career, Mitra has tried to do things out of the ordinary. A photography buff and a bibliophile, his habit of browsing through the College Street stalls in Kolkata for hours is an addiction that goes back to his college days. Rewards include a copy of the famed Golden Bough that belonged to Swami Vivekananda and an early edition of Hicky's Bengal Gazette, the first English newspaper out of Kolkata. But obviously, the stocks are dwindling. "The charm has gone with the passing away of some of the stall owners who were connoisseurs in their own right," he says. Still, Mitra does manage to unearth rare gems. You just need to look extra hard.