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Malini Malik

@malinimalik

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Shop: @generalitems.in🧴👕🪑📕
Travel: @comeaway.in 🌸🌴

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What is good taste, anyway?

Malini Malik has spent years being called a tastemaker, a word she’s never quite claimed for herself. She calls it work: looking at a lot of things, saying no to most of them, and doing it all again the next day.

She’s the co-founder of General Items (@generalitems.in), a design store and occasional gallery in Bengaluru, and runs Come Away (@comeaway.in), a design-led travel consultancy building journeys across the Indian subcontinent.

For this edition of Wax Poetic, Malini unpacks what actually sits behind “good taste.” Where it comes from, how it’s built, and what really goes into deciding what’s good.

Sunday, September 27, 6:30 PM.
Tickets in our bio! by @malinimalik

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10 days ago

In this delightful shopping guide to Bengaluru, Malini Malik (@malinimalik) takes us on a tour of a very different side of this lively city, away from the startup madness, nightlife bustle, and traffic jams. Elegant restored homes housing classic Indian handlooms, cherished rug collections, local fromageries, stationery knickknacks, off-beat vinyl stores—this thoughtfully curated list takes care of all your shopping needs.

Read now in Advisory. Link in bio.

(All photographs by Malini Malik.)

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[Guide, shopping, Retail, Bengaluru, Food, Thrift, Fabric, Clothing] by @malinimalik

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a month ago

Malini Malik of General Items (@generalitems.in) explores why the most interesting corner of your home might just be the kitchen shelf.

Co-founded by Malini Malik (@malinimalik) and Spandana Gopal (@tiipoi), Bengaluru’s General Items brings together a considered collection of small-batch preserves, spices, teas, chocolates, condiments, and dry goods, each chosen as much for its story and provenance as for what it brings to the table.

From organically grown preserves by Kuruvinakunnel Tharavadu Farms and chilli oil by Romano to fine teas by No. 3 Clive Road, farm-to-bar chocolates by Anuttama and handcrafted pasta by Gastronomica, the pantry becomes a place where food, design, memory, and regional identity come together.

For Malini, thoughtful packaging is part of that experience. Puli Spices, for instance, uses bright, playful illustrations to make traditional South Indian spice blends feel contemporary, opening the door to recipes and traditions that might otherwise be overlooked.

Words by Mallika Advani (@mallixx)
Photos by Malini Malik (@malinimalik)
Store and Portrait by Bhavya Pansari (@bhavyapansari)

#GeneralItems #MaliniMalik #SpandanaGopal #IndianDesign #LivingetcIndia

[General Items, Malini Malik, Spandana Gopal, Bengaluru, pantry design, Indian food brands, small-batch producers, kitchen styling, food packaging, regional flavours, contemporary Indian design] by @malinimalik

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a month ago

@generalitems.in co-founder, @malinimalik brings her work home. The sourcing consultant’s keen eye does not leave her when she’s on her travels, and just like her store, her personal vault’s filled with treasures she’s picked up from around the world. In the first episode of What We Bring Back, the serial sourcer opens up about how she’s always on the lookout for local crafts, festive jewellery, sweet berries, and everything in between.

Team: @christopherchullan @amishrejith @maleehaw29 @meg.mathew by @malinimalik

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a month ago

Who’s got the dreamer’s disease?🌀🫐💘 by @malinimalik

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3 months ago

This blue dress 💙 @runawaybicycle

📸: @shrutnag by @malinimalik

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5 months ago

From asking a Virgin Atlantic pilot to smuggle a View-Master from America, to making in-store sales while concrete render was being slapped onto our walls, to persuading a sign painter to finish our sign on time (mostly by painting it ourselves)—after which he wanted to employ us. All in a days work for our second showcase at General Items ❤️

Showcase 2: Viewpoint is now open. Come on in and enjoy the view 👁️

Tue–Sun | 12 PM–8 PM | 24, Gangadhara Chetty Rd, Bangalore - 42 🏡

📸: @bhavyapansari by @malinimalik

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8 months ago

Outside @generalitems.in, through @korasaku0_0’s lens for @ginzamagazine, Nov ’24 by @malinimalik

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a year ago

Bangalore through my eyes for @suitcase❤️

Link in bio taken in Bangalore, India by @malinimalik

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a year ago

We’re in the FT 😍 Featured in Cult Shop by @fthtsi and @financialtimes. A big thank you to @bayasimons and @ines_cross for telling our story ❤️🙏🏼

“‘We met in Bengaluru last year through a mutual friend. You could call it love at first sight,’ says product buyer Malini Malik (@malinimalik) of her first encounter with Spandana Gopal, founder of design studio Tiipoi (@tiipoi). Within 10 minutes, the pair had bonded over their love of minimalist interiors and functional design, and the idea to start a business together was born. Four months later, in August 2024, they opened General Items (@generalitems.in), a shop and “occasional” gallery in Bengaluru’s bustling Ulsoor.”

Link in bio taken in Bangalore, India by @malinimalik

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a year ago

Thank you @beautifulhomes.india for featuring our store ❤️

“Gopal, known for her London-based design studio @tiipoi, and Malik (@malinimalik), a seasoned sourcing consultant, came together with a shared love for design and community building. Their collaboration brings a fresh perspective to Bengaluru’s retail scene, with a focus on creating an inviting, approachable space for people of all ages.”

Link in bio taken in Bangalore, India by @malinimalik

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a year ago

Back on the feed with my sun-kissed & surf-bruised look 🏄🏻‍♀️

It’s season time in sunny South Lanka! If you’re after beach days, surf breaks, and that laid-back island life, now’s the time to plan your trip 🌴

DM to know more 🤍

xx taken in Ahangama by @malinimalik

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2 years ago