Shilparamam Crafts Village, Madhapur, Hyderabad
is the place to accomplish your thirst with traditional
customs. One of Hyderabad's sightseeing places,
Shilparamam is now hosting its 7th Annual All
India Crafts Mela. It was inaugurated on December
16 and has been declared as the National event
by the Government of India. Ministry
of Textiles, Government of India with assistance
of the Development Comissioner of Handicrafts
and Handlooms is organising the mela.
The village and surroundings of Shilparamam gives
a welcome break from the routine of our mechanised
world. All traditional and folk varieties of India
can be seen under one roof i.e., Shilparamam.
About 450 artisans from across the country are participating
and displaying their work. The articles available
are artistic metalware, bidri, wood and stone carvings,
terracota pottery, embroidery, traditional brass
vessels, Zari Sarees, Tanjore paintings,
paintings from Mysore, wooden toys, leather
goods, agate jewellery and much more. Sprawling
over 50 acres, all the stalls are form a colourful
display. The other articles that draw attention
are jewel cases made of stones from Varanasi,
Madhubani paintings, exquisitely designed
leather lamp shades from Andhra, wooden toys
from Rajasthan, idols made of soap stone
from Tamil Nadu, dishes made of radium-like
glass and silver jewellery from Maharashtra.
 "I
came to Shilparamam to display my Terrakota crafts.
I am making good profits with this mela," says
Gandalal from Haryana.This time
he made a 'Tabla' (to showcase in almirahs)
in his own Terrakota style. A stall displaying
batik paintings received immense response.
"All short pieces were sold out. We have
no single piece to show you. I haven't ever recieved
so much response to my crafts," said Pallavi
Kulakarni, Aurangabad, Maharashtra. Textile
crafts form the dominant part of the mela. Artecrafts
from Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan
with chikan work, mirror work shawls
and kurtas are on display with costs
ranging from Rs. 100 to Rs. 5000.
Many cultural programmes are being organised
to entertain the visitors in the evenings. The opening
day witnessed Kuchipudi performance by Alekhya
to the soulful ghazals rendered by Devi Ramana
Murthy. Moreover, one can counter the cold evening
with warm foods here. Spicy Chaats, Kachori,
tikkis, pani puri, bhel puri, dosas, sweets
and varieties of dishes are available to cheer
up the visitors.
The 'Mela' will be open for public from 8.30
a.m. to 8.30 p.m. till December 31.
Read more on 'Shilparamam'
in Sightseeing section. |
