Bhubaneswar, June 16: This Raja festival, shops offered many new and interesting flavours of paan (betel leaf).

Eating paan has almost become a ritual during the three-day festival. A number of paan sellers in the city offered various flavours such as chocolate, strawberry, butterscotch, and blackcurrant.

Banarasi Paan Bhandar in Saheed Nagar has the widest range of Raja paan. The shop offers around 20 flavours of paan apart from specialties such as ice and fire paan.

Montu, who owns the paan shop, says Raja is a time when people order paan in large quantities to gift their friends and relatives.

"I decided to offer something new to customers this time," Montu said.

The chuski paan, also known as the ice paan, was a hit. A combination of a chuski and a meetha paan was also popular among paan lovers.

"Initially, I was worried but, the fire paan left a cool sensation in my mouth. It was a unique experience," said Mitali Sahoo, a college student.

Makeshift kiosks mushroomed all over the city and made brisk business during Raja.

Women of all age groups were spotted at shops, malls and restaurants during the three-day Raja festival that concluded today.

The folk song for the occasion - Barasaku Thare Asichhi Raja - echoed at various places of the city.

Decorated swings with flowers hung from branches of trees were seen in villages in the vicinity of Cuttack and Bhubaneswar. Also, hammocks were set up on verandahs and balconies.

The Odisha Tourism Development Corporation organised Raja Mahotsav at Panthanivas and a food festival was hosted on Exhibition Ground. Food festivals were also organised at private hotels in the city.

Chief minister Naveen Patnaik took to Twitter to convey his greetings to the people of the state. Along with the twin cities, the festival was also celebrated in other places of the state such as Puri, Paradip, Berhampur and Keonjhar.