Wooden products on sale at Gandhi Shilp Bazaar organised by Orissa State Co-operative and Handicraft Coproration and Development Commission (Handicrafts) in Bhubaneswar. Pictures by Ashwinee Pati

Bhubaneswar, March 17: It may be time for you to break that piggy bank if you are a fan of handicrafts. Crafts and handloom products from all over the country are on display at Gandhi Shilp Bazaar that began in the city on Thursday.

The national handicraft fair on at the Exhibition Ground has been organised by the Orissa State Co-operative Handicraft Corporation and Development Commission (Handicrafts), Government of India.

The fair offers hundreds of articles for home decor and a wide range of traditional and modern fashion accessories and fabrics.

A wide range of wooden furniture from Uttar Pradesh, bamboo and cane furniture from the northeast and carpets from Jammu and Kashmir are available at the fair. Popular handcrafted flowers from northeastern states such as, Assam and Manipur, are also put on display.

Paintings from Calcutta, Hyderabad and Bangalore have been displayed by artists while artisans from Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh have brought black metal and bell metal showpieces. The craftsmen are hopeful of good business at the fair.

“We have been exhibiting our products all over the country. Regular fairs are helping to promote our crafts,” said Hamid, an artisan from Jammu and Kashmir. “Usually, the weather here, during the summer, is harsh and that hinders sale. But this year, the heat is bearable and we hope customers will make rounds of our stalls,” he said.

You will find a wide range of jewellery and fashion accessories such as, footwear, bangles and stoles, at the fair. If fashion is your passion, make a beeline for stalls selling chanderi, kantha, Sambalpuri sarees and handloom garments from various states.

Crafts of Orissa at the fair include terracotta vases and decorative showpieces, dhokra crafts, patta paintings and so on. “We usually do good business during fairs in Bhubaneswar. This time, too, we are hopeful of good business,” said Ramesh Sahoo, a craftsman.

The 10-day fair that will be on till March 26 aims to promote traditional handicrafts and allow a platform for craftsmen and customers to interact, say officials.

“Around 200 different stalls have been set up to accommodate crafts from all over the country. This will not only boost local crafts sale but also allow residents of Bhubaneswar to collect craft items from different states,” said an organising official.