Colourful curios are up for sale at IA Block’s Aikatan, where the West Bengal Handicrafts Fair is on till July 22. Organised by the state department of micro, small and medium enterprises and textiles, the fair is open to all from 2pm to 8.30pm.

Here are some items to look out for — 

PAINTED KETTLES

Kettles with patachitra-like art have been quite the in-thing for a few years now, but Debdita Banerjee’s stall has kettles with replicas of art from the Ajanta and Ellora caves. She’s also taken everyday utensils like aluminium mugs and handi lids and painted Jamini Roy and Kalighata art replicas on them. “We also have mugs with Feluda characters and our Sohoj Path series on terracotta sold out in two days at this fair,” said Debjit Kumar Banerjee, who was filling in for his artiste-daughter at the stall.

Price: Rs 3,000 for the kettles

BETELNUT CUPS

The fair has the cutest cups and saucers, barely a few inches high and, with an inimitable design in brown and beige. “They are made of supuri,” smiles Sukla Pyne, the artiste. “My husband runs a betelnut business so sacks of them would lie around in our house. I started carving them out of curiosity and realised they could be turned into home decor items.”

Price: Rs 50

JUTE TREES

Some curious-looking jute trees are sure to catch your eye at the fair. This date palm (khejur) tree has leaves and roots made of jute. “We ripped the edges to lend a natural look,” said Anurupa Halder, the artiste from South 24-Parganas. “For the tree trunk, we’ve used pine fruits, that resemble the uneven surface of the actual trunk. This is our first time at this fair and if the response is good, we can get jute coconut trees or even jute trees with lighting on.”

Price: Rs 250

THREAD BANGLES

The fair has its share of jewellery made of terracotta, plywood, kalamkari and gamchha as well as thread. The bangles in the picture are made by winding white or coloured thread around thick recycled cardboard-like strips. “We then use fabric paint over them to create designs,” says Moumita Dey, the artiste from Maniktala. The bangles are brightly coloured and washable. 

Price: Rs 150

MOCKTAIL CANDLES

This tempting shelf of mocktails is not edible. These are candles, made by Tapas Meyur of Liluah. “Usually people buy these as showpieces but they come with wicks, so in case of a power cut, they can be lit up. They would emanate a fragrance and the glass would not be damaged,” he says. Meyur has also carved out candles to make fruits like grapes and jamrul and his floating candles, he says, are fast replacing diyas during Diwali and Chhat puja. “Diyas are heavy and sink in the river during Chhat. These stay afloat.”

Price: Rs 100-250 per glass

Text: Brinda Sarkar. Pictures: Shubham Paul