post news network
Bhubaneswar, Sept 15: Cottonfab, the annual handicrafts exhibition, offers a delightful vista of national integration of sorts. If ceramic ware from Uttar Pradesh is attracting buyers at one end, there is a colourful treat on offer in the stalls selling clothing.
Kurta-pyjamas, bandhej suits, salwars and dupattas and Gujarati ethnic print kurtis vie for attention as do chikan dress materials from Lucknow. According to the organisers, clothes from Awadh and Lucknow are increasingly popular.
Gyanendra operates one of the two stalls dedicated to clothing with chikan work from Lucknow at the expo. He claims he is having a good time at the till. “We make profits between `10,000 and `20,000 every day by selling our products,” he said. The dressmaker explains that chikan work involves 36 types of stitches such as ‘murri’, ‘bakhia’, ‘jali’, and ‘tepchi’. And the intricate designs makes the work time-consuming.
“It takes 35 days to produce these dresses with chikan embroidery,” Gyanendra said, pointing at some of his merchandise.
Awadh is a region in Uttar Pradesh which used to be one of the princely states under the British rule. Lucknow had been the capital of this princely state. A unique style of dressing and dress materials was developed in this region under rulers of Awadh. At present about 200 artisans spread over villages in the region are producing these dresses that are no less than works of art.
Gyanendra and seven others have made the Awadhi dresses a regular presence at Cottonfab over the past four years. Their work has received much acclaim in metropolitan cities such as Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai and in other cities such as Nagpur. At Cottonfab, the artisans are selling “Chikan sarees for prices between `580 and `2,500”. They are selling other dress materials at prices ranging from `380 to `1,800.
People visiting the stalls selling the apparel, too, appeared to be enchanted by the material that was put on display. Sheetal, student of a city college, had come to the exhibition after many of her friends recommended that it was a “must visit event”.
“I bought some dresses from the Awadh stall particularly because my friends said I should not miss it for anything. I had been planning to buy some clothes of this kind for quite some time now. And once my friends told me that these dresses are available here, I could not resist visiting the exhibition. I have fallen in love with the dresses,” she said.
Just as Sheetal, Laxmee, was all praise for the dresses available. “It is not possible to find such materials in shopping malls. The prices of the clothes being sold at this exhibition are also easy on the pocket,” Laxmee said.
The organisers have also tried to make the exhibition more interesting by introducing offers such as gift vouchers for customers buying products for more than `500. The winners are chosen by lucky draw.
Cottonfab will continue at the Exhibition Ground till October 3. As many as 122 artisans from 12 states across country are participating in it. The exhibition includes a wide variety of hand-crafted products.
