A space for a community of hobbyist builders

The first Lego store in India, which opened in Gurugram, is set to become a place for fans of the popular building sets to congregate

- Tushar Kanwar

I still remember the first time I held a Lego brick. It was in the mid-1980s, and my father had brought back a police command base set from one of his trips abroad. It soon transformed into a suburban home, then a makeshift moon base as we added bricks and pieces from other sets over the years. Fast forward nearly 40 years, and life's come full circle as I travel the world and drop into Lego stores to pick up sets that I can build with my now 12-year-old. Yet, each visit to stores abroad, from New York to London, has always raised one question—when will it come to India? Well, that question has finally been put to rest as Lego threw open the doors to its first Lego Certified Store at Ambience Mall in Gurugram.

Spanning 4,500 square feet, it is the brand's largest store in South Asia. Walking into it felt like stepping through a portal, with the scent of fresh plastic bricks, the multicolored explosion of sets lining the shelves (everything from the Friends and Icons to the Technic and the Botanicals collections), fully built sets on display, play tables, and features that are essential to Lego stores, like a Pick-a-Brick Wall, Build-a-Minifigure Station and a rare Minifigure Factory.