Radio Bombay
Regular price $ 300.00The ever-popular fragrance Radio Bombay is a study in sandalwood. A perfumer's imagining of a transistor radio hewn of sandalwood, radiating ragas in the Bandra heat as hot copper tubes warm the soft wood, releasing blooms of musk, cream, peach, ambrette, coco and cedar distillates. Always one of the first perfumes we suggest for sandalwood lovers, perfumer David Moltz tells the scent's story:
"I am interested in hypothetical scent. Not everything has a strong or readily perceivable aroma, but objects can suggest a fragrance. Light bulbs glow. Electricity courses through their metal filaments. They melt the dust on their surface emitting wisps of heat. The tubes in amplifiers have a certain aroma. When my ‘69 Fender Deluxe gets heated-up (after rip-roaring monster shredding), the back of the amp produces a hot dusty metallic grease perfume—the scent of backstage in a humid venue.
So what if there was a tube amplifier in an old radio made of sandalwood? Then the interaction of the heat would open up the pores of the wood, singing its smooth elegant fragrance - puffs of musky cedar, peach, coconut, lactones, milk.
Real sandalwood essence is perfection. I often wear it neat. It smells of India, effigies, purity, focus. Unfortunately, it has been overharvested, so perfumers don’t use the oil from Mysore anymore.
Radio Bombay is a deconstruction of the Mysore santal rebuilt from all the aspects written above. I imagine the radio sitting in a small hot shop in Bandra —the 'Brooklyn' of Bombay (sorry). The heat deconstructs the oils in the wood. Ragas and Geeta Dutt tunes jangle out of its tiny speaker in the busy city."
Perfumer
David Seth Moltz
Notes
radiant wood, copper, cedar, sandalwood, radiant iris, boronia, balsam fir absolute, coconut musk, ambergris
Shipping & Fulfillment
Ministry of Scent offers shipping to the United States through USPS Ground Advantage and UPS. We provide free shipping for USPS orders $75+.
| Order type | Order total | Shipping method | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sample-only & Sample Sets | N/A | USPS Ground Advantage* | $5 |
| Standard shipping | Under $75 | USPS Ground Advantage* or UPS Ground** | $10 |
| Free shipping | $75 and over | USPS Ground Advantage* or UPS Ground** | $0 |
| 3-day shipping | Any | UPS 3-Day Service | Variable |
* USPS delivery times may vary by destination. All orders ship from California.
** Carrier selection is based on destination.
Shipping Time & Schedule
We process and ship orders within 1–4 business days, excluding major holidays. Orders ship Monday through Saturday; we do not ship on Sundays, and Sundays are not included in our processing or delivery timelines.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us at orders@ministryofscent.com.
Signature Requirements
For delivery security, first-time orders over $125 and all orders over $200 ship with signature confirmation.
If you prefer delivery without a signature, you may request this in the Order Notes at checkout. Please note that by opting out, you acknowledge that we’re unable to replace or refund an order that is marked as delivered without signature confirmation. If the item is stolen after tracked delivery, the order cannot be refunded or replaced.
Lost or Stolen Packages
Once an order is marked as delivered by USPS or UPS (including orders signed for by the recipient), we’re unable to provide replacements or refunds for packages that are lost or stolen.
Claims can be filed only for orders officially designated as lost in transit by USPS or UPS. We’re unable to file claims or assume responsibility for orders marked as delivered by the carrier, including those signed for by the recipient.
If your delivery location is prone to theft or missed deliveries, we recommend shipping to a more secure address, such as a workplace, trusted recipient, or carrier hold location.
Our Fulfillment Team is happy to help advise on the best way to ensure your order arrives safely. If you have questions about your order or delivery options, please contact orders@ministryofscent.com.
Sample Orders
Samples are designed to help you evaluate scents you might want to later purchase as a full bottle. You may order one sample per fragrance, up to 15 total in a single order. Samples are non-refundable.
For sample orders, please check your packing slip for a special code that will allow you to redeem the price of samples and sample shipping when purchasing full bottles of the scents you sample ($10 off full bottles).
Complimentary Samples
We provide complimentary samples with $75+ full-bottle purchases. You may request up to 3 samples with any qualifying order. Please use the Order Note section on the Shopping Cart overlay to let us know which complimentary samples you would like. We'll try to provide the scents you've requested, but substitutions may occur if items are out of stock.
Returns
We do not accept returns of perfumes, simply because perfumes can't be resold once they've been opened and used. We encourage you to order samples before purchasing full bottles of perfume. And here's the good news — with every sample purchased, we'll send you a coupon code that allows you to redeem the cost of the sample and sample shipping if you buy a full bottle of the fragrance you tried (in other words, you get $10 off).
Please contact orders@ministryofscent.com if you have a question or issue related to your order or shipping.
I finally found a DS& Durga fragrance that I absolutely love. I’ve tried many others and they just haven’t worked for me. I am already considering a full bottle.
This is my favorite perfume. It's a perfect combination of my favorite smells (strange, but I love the smell of a garage, the house my mom grew up in, something dusty and homey and ethereal...) and the smells I like to wear (soft and subtle feminine woods, smooth, clean but deep musks). Dusty, papery, worldly, it smells like clean cotton and tea made in mineral water and the sound the brass bell makes when you walk into an antique store. It smells like petal pink, like soft satin and concrete. I feel so comfy when I wear it... it smells like it was made for me. It fades during the day, and I can barely smell it by evening, but when I sweat, the woody notes and creamy musks light up again. I wear it for myself more than others.
And it DOES actually smell like a transistor radio! How do they do it?!!