Shopaholics spoilt for choice as melas, expos arrive in Heritage City

It is festival time. Come July-August, it is time to go on a shopping spree with festivals round the corner.
The heritage city gears up to host a number of melas, leaving the shoppers, especially women, spoilt for choice. It is the beginning of Shravana masa, which is considered auspicious, according to the Hindu calendar.

Starting from Bheemana Amavasye, Mangalagowri Vratha, and Nagapanchami in July, an array of festivals like Varamahalakshmi Vratha, Raksha Bandhan, Sri Krishna Jayanti and Gowri-Ganesha are celebrated this month (August). The traders are making use of the festive mood of the people, by organising a variety of melas and exhibitions in the city, which offer attractive discounts.

However, it may be noted that the discount sales began from the month of Ashada itself, with some offering more than 50% discount for some products. This is a sort of clearance sale, to enable the businessmen to get consignments of fresh stock, with latest designs and style, for the festive season.

Currently, National Consumer Fair on Exhibition Grounds, Vastrotsava at Urban Haat, Rajasthan Grameena Mela at Nanjaraja Bahaddur Choultry, Sahara Mela on Scouts and Guides Grounds, Gruha Shobhe on Maharaja’s College Grounds and sale of silk sarees by weavers from Kanchipuram at Mayuri Yatri Nivas are being held in the city.

While a few exhibitions like Urban Haat and Rajasthan Mela provide an opportunity to artisans from across the country to display their products, most of them concentrate on household articles. Some expos target middle income groups by offering equated monthly instalment (EMI) facility for electronic goods, automobiles, interiors and furniture.

However, discounts on silk sarees, claiming to be the purest and latest, is attracting women in large numbers. With Varamahalakshmi festival scheduled for Friday (July 4), and Gowri-Ganesha being celebrated in the end of this month, the expos are doing good business.

Speaking to DH, Rakesh Rai, project coordinator of JSS Mysore Urban Haat, said, they have been organising exhibitions with an objective to encourage artisans from across the country.
“We are getting good response from the people. It provides the people an opportunity to procure genuine products, directly from artisans, that highlight the culture and tradition of their respective state,” he added.