Hindustan Times (Lucknow) - Hindustan Times (Lucknow) - Live
Enter the world of handicraft!
Handicrafts from across the country have been put on display during the ongoing Saras Mohatsav 2019 that is being held at Jhulelal Park on the banks of river Gomti. A singular place to find everything from world famous Kashmiri pashmina, to Assam’s exquisite bamboo products to Bihar’s much loved Madhubani paintings among other admirable things. It is an exhibition of handmade jewellery along with beautifully carved statues and attractive phulkaris all oozing out bona fide work of different artisans of different states of India, all displayed and ready to be sold.
The festival is celebrated every year to acknowledge the folk art and to learn more about the specifics of different culture. Various stalls that depicted these folk art and culture were Andhra Pradesh’s all natural dyed kalamkari saris, Lucknow’s terracotta products and Madhya Pradesh’s Chanderi saris.
Kalamkari shopkeeper Verankant Laxmi said, “This art form is passed on from generation to generation for past 200 years in Andhra Pradesh. It includes printing with natural colors without any use of harmful chemicals, thus, eco-friendly clothes at minimal prices. This includes a variety of products with kalamkari work on it, varying from shirts, to saris, suits and scarves.”
Other stall that caught the attention of most was of never seen before eco-friendly handicrafts made out of recycled newspapers by a man from Jhansi. Abhishek Tamraker, an artisan from Jhansi, said, “I only use newspapers to make things like statues, lantern, chandeliers and toys among many other things. I have started this venture to cut the use of plastic and to spread a message against plastic usage.” He also added, “Jute is another good eco-friendly substitute for making bags, toys, flower vases etc and by selling them at a lower price does promote the usage of these recycled products than other plastics.”
Among other things, street food stations ranging from baati-chokha to golgappe with people relishing them to recreational ground filled with giggles of the little ones were the constant of the festival with more and more people turning in to check out the festival.
The festival will continue till February 20.