Traders show their talent in creativity

Commodity to artefacts

For once, coconuts were not just mere commodities, they were also the objects of creativity. Incense sticks spread its fragrance not as a puja material, but again as a stick for creativity. So also the jaggery.

With the city celebrating Nada Habba Dasara, the always busy Devaraja Market on Sayyaji Rao road on Thursday garnered the attention of the customers, as traders exhibited the products in attractive styles for ‘Market Show’.

K Chikkaiah, the coconut vendor had built a mountain out of the very produce with flowers in between, besides decorating the pillars of the shop.

They were also hung from one end to another ditto like flowers. A portrait of Goddess Chamundeshwari was kept in the middle, thus making the decoration complete for the show.

Said Chikkaiah; “Last year we had created Shivalinga out of it. This year owing to less time and also the show reduced to a day, we couldn’t think in a bigger way.”

In the same line was another coconut shop- Srinivas Stores  who stood distinctly apart; with three idols of Lord Ganesha carved out of a dried coconut shell fixed into one and installed on the top of the coconut. The decorative lights enhanced the beauty of the same, giving it an edge over others.

Mention must be made of Shankar Agarbathis. Mahboob Pasha, the shop owner told Deccan Herald, he had used incense sticks only to recreate the map of Karnataka. A huge garland hung around the map was also made of the sticks. What aroused patriotism among visitors was the flags of Kannada kept on the either side of the map.

In the previous years, he had recreated Palace and Devaraja Market with the sticks.
At the lane of jaggery shops, Shankar had displayed types of jaggery for the benefit of the visitors. Apart from the regular- white, Mandya bella (jaggery), Bidadi and Chamarajanagar bella, he had that of Erode, Kollapura, mudde (ball shaped) bucket and also aani.

Barring those used regularly in the kitchen, the remaining varieties are most used for medicinal purposes, Shankar added.

At fruits section, buntings of types denoted the festive mood. Some had kept the flower bedecked portraits of erstwhile Maharajas Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar and Jayachamaraja Wadiyar, and had also performed puja to the same.

The Mysore City Corporation (MCC) the caretaker of the market had cleansed the market for the show with spick and span floor welcoming the visitors. The entrances to the market had also been decorated with floral welcome arches.