People have been thronging the first fair of the season, Karigar Haat, all week. The fair at Central Park fair grounds opened last Friday and will be on till November 16.


 


Carpets, jewellery, masks, blue pottery, wood and cane furniture...the fair has a vast variety of items for visitors to browse. Haseen Ahmed of Varanasi is selling opulent Benarasi saris and salwar suits. 'At Rs 200 per meter, I also have a silk-and-cotton cross stitched material that can be worn as a sari as well as stitched to make salwar material. But saris are easily outselling salwars at this fair,' said Ahmed.


 


From Manipur have come handloom artisans selling mekhlas to Modi jackets. 'People are calling these Modi jackets now but they have always been popular in Imphal,' says Inaoba Pukhrambam, about sleeveless waistcoats that the Prime Minister has popularised. 'Whether the design is a passing fad or not, I can assure that the jacket will last for years. We also have handloom kurtas priced at Rs 2,200 and mekhlas at Rs 1,800.'


 
 
 


A must-visit stall is the one by Russian Evgenia Nesterova. She, along with her Ukrainian friend and interpreter Pavel Onoprienko, are selling T-shirts with mythological characters under the Be a Bee brand. While they have a separate line for adults, the children's collection is so cute that adults are making a beeline for them too. 'In Europe adults only wear black, white and grey so we left the colourful tops for kids,' says Nesterova, now a resident of Ooty, in broken English. The kids' tops have a smiling goddess Kali juggling with skulls, Ganesha painting with his trunk etc. and cost Rs 500 each.


 


The fair is a paradise for junk jewellery lovers. Rajkumar, an artisan from Rajasthan, sells chains with funky lockets shaped like cameras, golf clubs and hats. 'These are all for Rs 80 but I also have more expensive meenakari jewellery,' is all he managed to say in between catering to a swarm of customers.


 


Kanailal Bagchi, a musical instrument maker and seller from Nadia, keeps visitors at his stall entertained by singing baul songs. 'Seven or eight years ago I would sell about 100 ektaras at a fair like this. Last year, I sold 500,' he says showing his ektaras, dotaras and khanjanis. 'There has been a quiet revival of interest in the baul culture. So many youngsters are buying instruments and asking me to give them their first music lesson on the spot.'


 


A stall from Habra has brought a seesaw-like dheki and women are using it to pound rice ( dhaan). The powdered rice is then being used to make Pithe Puli on a wooden stove. 'This old- fashioned style of cooking yields tastier and healthier food,' says Sunita Das, handing over a plate of Sheddho Puli and Kheerer Patishapta to a customer. The items are priced at around Rs 10 a piece. 'There is good demand for the pithes but it is the bottles of cow ghee that I am running out of every evening.'


 


The food corner offers phuchkas, chops, momos, ghugni and an Aapno Rajasthan counter. This stall sells a special Marwari kulfi and a Rs 150 thali of Dal Bati Churma, Bajra Roti, Missi Roti, Lasun Chutney, Pancharatna Dal, Besan Gatta Sabzi, Halwa and Churma Laddu.


 


Visitors are delighted with all the offerings. 'I browsed the entire fair and bought lovely jewellery and salwar pieces,' said a visitor Sarmistha Som, walking out with a custard apple-flavoured herbal ice candy in hand. 'I had come to Salt Lake all the way from New Alipore as I had heard artisans will be coming from all over the country. It was very enjoyable.'