shantanu_webmaster, please avoid typing in CAPS.
GMail is the best. Yahoo! India provides free POP3 to one and all. I do not have SMTP access though.
ankitsagwekar, betas are essentially final releases and this is especially true in case of Google's products. If you are refraining from using the best email service just because it has the 'Beta' tag attached to it, you should seriously consider Shakespeare's comment, "What's in a name!" As for not getting the email address you want, well, when a service becomes as famous as GMail is, it is likely that the best addresses are already taken. Try varying the username a bit and you should find one you like that is available too.
Or you could try Bluebottle if you still do not want to use GMail or Yahoo!