the latest in electronic goods

PAPER-PROTECTION sked Paper protection, BUSINESS INDIA -Part 3

Bangalore's Burmah Bazaar offers a dazzling array of the latest in electronic goods. Interestingly, Sony's GR8, the latest hi-fi CD changer music system, sells here for Rs. 24,000 as against the legit market price of Rs 31,000 warranty cards and all. Sony's latest handicam model is already available here, though not yet Sony outlets. Burmah Bazaar is so popular that cellular providers Spice Telecom and JTM are coaxing retailers to market their SIM cards along with the imported cell phones that sell for less than the authorised market price.

Frankly Fake The question, ''Is this genuine?'' gets a variety of responses from the frankly fake to the most elaborate subterfuge. The louboutin boots salesman at Amar Kala in south Mumbai's Heera Panna Shopping Centre, is a rare bird who calls a spade a spade, ''This Lacoste T-shirt is imported from Thailand,'' he says, adding ''not from France.'' Is it made by christian louboutin in Thailand?. ''No, but the Tahi make the best imitations in the world,'' he says with frank admiration. Other retailers in the shopping centre tread a fine line, ''Imported from Thailand,'' they say. It is truth, but not the whole truth. In Calcutta's Esplanade area, the faking is subtle: Calvin Klein copies carry only the CK logo. Levis wannabes in the area sell as Lavis.

Others of course, lie outright. ''Imported from France,'' says the christian louboutin shoes salesman in another shop in Herra Panna. a close scrutiny offers no clues, from the Fabrique en France label right down to the bar coded price-tag and the 4-colour promo card dangling from the centre button. But the glossy promo card's contents are a dead give-away, ''You are now the proud owner of a piece if history,'' concludes the first para inside. If history? Typos seem to be the only obvious element the copy cats have not mastered.

Clearly, faking is not a difficult shoe business: ''Our supplier imports only the labels from Thailand, the rest is made here in India,'' says one louboutin boots salesman. In Mumbai's Crawford Market, shoppers find a thriving roadside market for Noritake crockery, Samsonite suitcases and DKNY bags. The brand names fool few, but the goods are value-for-money. A hawker in Mumbai's Fort area says that his Braun hair dryer is the real thing at Rs 850, while maintaining, ''We know of units near New Delhi where we can get any brand name printed onto any product, it is not a big deal.

Despite the fact that the markets are awash with fakes, buyers are not always victims in this game. Few who buy a Pierre Cardin belt for Rs 250 in Mumbai's Bhuleshwar believe it is the real thing.

Most Indian Shoppers at Mumbai's Oberoi Towers know that the Christian Dior bag they buy for Rs 800 is no more French than the Taj Mahal but the question is, how many foreigner who shop there know that? Legitimate dealers complain of the free ride their brands give to the metoo products. The dealers of Woodlands louboutin shoes on Mumbai's Linking Road, says that similar looking shoes sell under the name Woorlands. ''It is technically a different name, so they get away.''