Bhubaneswar, June 11: Women have started shopping for the Raja festival, which is dedicated to the spirit of womanhood and Mother Earth.

Girls are on a shopping spree since it is the tradition to wear new clothes during the festival.

From heavily embellished saris to colourful kurtis and from sporty tops to short dresses, women of various age groups can be seen buying new clothes at various sari stores, shopping malls and designer stores. The stores are offering heavy discounts and attractive gifts to woo the women.

During the festival, women take a break from their busy day and pamper themselves by indulging in shopping and rituals.

With shops in the city chock-a-block with customers, it is boom time for retail storeowners.

"The collection includes sleeveless dresses with animal and floral prints. The colour combinations of the clothes are bright with yellow, white, light red and green the favourites," said Ramesh Sahu, owner of a retail store at Unit-1 market.

A number of hotels in the city have come up with special platters for the festival. The Odisha Tourism Development Corporation will celebrate the festival on its premises from June 13 to 16.

The Zodiac Restaurant of The Crown Hotel, Bhubaneswar, has laid out a special buffet for the festival from June 14 to 18.

The grand buffet includes typical Odia dishes such as khasi mansa jhola (mutton curry), prawn masala, sorisa kankada (crab cooked with special mustard sauce) and bhakura kalia (Indian carp cooked with typical Odia spices).

For the non-vegetarians, there is a lot to look forward to in the platter such as Odia delicacies like chena tarkari, bhendi besara, manja rai (bamboo stem chutney) and dahi baingan.

During the festival, people can indulge in various types of pithas such as arisha, kakara, karanji, poda, bhaja and sijha manda. These pithas are made in the traditional manner using handmade ingredients.

The wide range of food items at various hotels, include typical Odia sweets such as chena poda, rasabali, pahala rasgolla and chena jhili.

"Raja is a time to celebrate traditionalism. We have prepared the menu keeping this in mind," said Archana Satapthy, who runs an Odia restaurant at Nayapalli.

The ambiance at the eateries has also been customised for the customers to relax with friends and family members. A decorated doli (swing), which is typical to the festival, has been set up for visitors.

Consuming paan is a major ritual of the festival, so arrangements for special tobacco-free Banarasi paan have also been made. A number of special paan kiosks have come up at various places in the city.