Review of Khadi Utsav 2017

A quick review of Khadi Utsav 2017, which is the 60^th national level traditional handloom textiles exhibition taking place in Freedom Park, Bengaluru till May 23rd.

Hi Dear Enthusiast!

Are you in Bengaluru? Are you fond of traditional textiles? Have you been to Khadi Utsav 2017? We are happy we made it to the exhibition on 14^th of May. Here is a quick review of the exhibition.

Khadi Utsav 2017

The 60^th national level traditional handloom textiles exhibition (24^th April to 23^rd May) is being exhibited at Freedom Park, Gandhi Nagar, Bengaluru. The exhibition is organised by Karnataka Khadi and Village Industries Board.

Textiles and home furnishings in the Khadi Utsav

• A basic spinning and weaving demo which is useful for common man to understand the concept.
• Around hundred traditional textiles stalls from all over India. Genuine traditional textiles directly from the makers (registered organisations) and reasonable pricing for the workmanship. It is a place where each rupee we pay reaches the makers. And each rupee we spend is worth it. The textile and design lover within me is satisfied by the quality and quantity of the textiles for the offered price.
• We can find awesome collection of Ilkal (Karnataka), Kasuti (Karnataka), Kalamkari (Andhra Pradesh), Bandhni (Gujarat), Ikkat (Odisha), Kashida (Kashmir), Phulkari (Punjab), Chikankari (Uttar Pradesh), Batik, various traditional hand embroidery textiles and many more. No idea about the textiles? Ask the sales assistants for the details of the textiles, you will get the information.

• What to find for females? Saris, Blouses, Salwar Kameezes, Kurtas, Kurtis, Vests, dress materials, Dupattas, shawls, bags… What else?
• Men too have a wide range of Kurtas, waistcoats, Paijamas, Shirts, shirt pieces, Shawls, Bags, etc.
• There are very cute kids’ ranges. Look for the stalls with kids sections and find skirt and blouse sets, salwar kameezes, frocks, Kurta paijama sets, desi shirts and also, custom dress materials.

• Kerchiefs, towels of different sizes, jamkhanas, bed sheets, bed spreads, rajais (quilts), mats, wall hangings, pillow cases… Whatever is needed for furnishing home, it is available in the exhibition.
• Wooden and earthen handicrafts anyone loves to possess. Chennapatna wooden toys are the notable ones among the toys section. Some jewely stalls are present. Footwear section is also impressive.

What else to know about the Khadi Utsav?

• Easy to locate venue. Sign boards direct the visitors to the venue hassle freely.
• A nominal entry fee of INR10 per individual is charged. Photography is allowed.
• Exhibition spread in a spacious place in the park.
• Beware! We cannot judge the number of the stalls from the entrance. Around 100 stalls are arranged in a hair pin curve manner. So, take a quick look of all the stalls first and then shop where you wish to.
• Very well organised stalls section. We went on a busy Sunday but yet there were no traffic jams in the exhibition area.
• Sales assistants are very friendly. They are generous with photographers. You can chat with them and ask the details of the textiles they make.
• Some sellers accept cards. Some do not. So, shopping has to be planned accordingly.
• Fans kept at different places let the visitors relax in between.
• Home-made food counters appear here and there to satisfy the visitors’ tummy while shopping.
• Food counters near the exit offer variety of good foods at sensible prices.

My Views

The Khadi Utsav 2017 is a well organised traditional textile exhibition. Everyone who likes to dress up can get something for their taste. A must visit for textile lovers. Brand lovers who pay a huge amount on the brands can blindly pay for these local brands. The money spent reaches the hard workers and will support the cottage industries.

So, dear Bengalurian, are you still thinking? Why don’t you just pay a visit and check? Buy if you like.  Come on! 5 more days left! Support the traditional textile makers. Dear Reader, please share your feedback if you have already visited. Let’s spread the goodness!

Bye until next post! TC and keep smiling 🙂

Note:

• The exhibition visit was purely personal and views are my own.
• I could photograph very less and share only fewer in the post. You can have a sight of more exciting textiles in the exhibition.