With the Rath yatra began the Rath-er Mela at Central Park fairgrounds. The fair, being organised by Bidhannagar Sree Chaitanya Bhagabat Samaj, will continue till July 17 and timings are from 4 to 9pm. Here are some items to watch out for this year — 

Seven-in-one sofas 
This piece of soft furniture has many a fold here and there and can be flipped to form seven designs including a sofa, a recliner and a bed. “It is made of orthopaedic foam that is used to make mattresses these days and will comfort people with backaches,” says Suman Panday of  Creative Furniture. 
The furniture comes in different sizes and covers. The one in the picture measures 5ftx6.5ft when opened like a bed and has a washable satin newsprint cover. “It’s only 18kg and can be easily dragged across the house,” says Panday. 
Stall: Creative Furniture 
Price: Rs 11,000 after 15 per cent discount for the fair

3D butterflies 
These butterflies are ubiquitous at the fair. There are two cut-outs of butterflies, one stuck loosely over the other and it has double-sided tape at the back. The butterflies are to be stuck on walls, windows, doors or fridges and would appear three-dimensional. 
Stall: Available at several open stalls 
Price: Rs 30 for a pack of four three-inch butterflies 

Innovative jewellery 
This stall has jewellery made of crochet, cloth, paper pulp and ceramics… “I’m an artiste and like creating art and jewellery out of innovative products. Buyers too are always on the lookout for new options,” says Mousumi Bagchi. “Gold-finish jewellery, for instance, has no buyers any more but they’re flocking to pick up my cloth or ceramic necklaces.”
Stall: Mou’s Creations 
Price: Rs 350 to 800

Boating ride  
There’s a new ride at the fair this year and kids are making a beeline for to it. The “Aqua Fun Boating” ride creates a pool of about 20-ft x 20-ft and lets afloat eight boats on it. Kids up to 12 years of age can sit on these boats and hand-paddle them to move about. 
“This ride has hit the jackpot,” says ticket-seller Khuku Das. “On the first day of the fair itself more than 200 kids rode it. The water is just knee-deep so there’s no danger whatsoever either”.
Stall: Kids’ play area 
Price: Rs 50 for a five minute ride 

Colourful cloth bags 
This stall sells the most colourful bags in the most unusual shapes — crescent, hexagonal, flared… “We are Iskcon devotees and are against using leather products. So we’re selling cloth bags in Gujarati and Rajasthani designs. Young girls are loving them,” says Santa Roychowdhury of the store.  
Stall: Gaura Enterprise 
Price: Rs 300 to 600
    

Pictures by Shubham Paul