'We have some of the funkiest clothes for youngsters. Be it tops, T-shirts or jeans, we have everything to offer. In fact, we have the best of fashion available at affordable prices. That is why we are inundated by shoppers every day,' smiled Yousuf Khan, a shopkeeper in Brigade Road.

'I take a lot of care while picking my clothes. So what if I am getting fashionable clothes at an affordable price? I make it a point to buy trendy clothes,' said Arjun Pai, another teenager.

Experts believe that over time, the street fashion sense of Bangalore has improved. The brands have made the young more style conscious and the street shoppers more aware.

Popular fashion designer Prasad Bidappa said that it was not wrong to buy clothes from the streets as long as the youth did not make a fashion faux pas.

'Fashionable means being comfortable and trendy. There is nothing wrong in buying affordable clothes from the streets. But, buyers should be aware about the latest trends and avoid making any mistakes,' Bidappa told IANS.

The city has been the worst hit by the global economic slowdown as the IT and BPO sectors are the two primary industries in Bangalore. Till both the sectors steady themselves, the woes of Bangalore are unlikely to end.

Forty percent of India's IT and BPO professionals work in the city.

An estimated 10 percent of the city's eight million people are employed in the IT and BPO sectors.