An irresistible, elegant deal

Ladies, don’t miss out on this treasure trove of fabric. The pricing might hold you back. Yet, don’t let go off this chance of seeing the best in fabric from across the country spread out at the exhibition of silk, cotton and handloom items at the Bhagyamala auditorium at Chandrasekharan Nair Stadium.In some 45 stalls, you would come across resplendent stuff in silk, cotton and handloom, be it sarees, salwar materials, dress materials or readymades, from Assam, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Gujarat, Rajasthan, UP, MP, Bihar and Haryana.    No doubt, silk spells luxury, elegance, class and comfort. If you are an expert with different varieties of silk available in the country, then you could shop for almost all of them here. The Silk Mark label ensures 100% natural silk in all products under a label.  The prestigious Munga (Muga) silk is the specialty at the stall of Assam (priced at Rs 2,400 and above), Jharkhand stall stands out owing to the Bhagalpuri silk sarees (Rs 2,500 and up), salwar materials (Rs 150 per metre), dupatta and linen stuff (Rs 450 onwards). West Bengal has its traditional Dakhai Jamdani sarees, in addition to Kota, Jute Cotton (Rs 550), Gandhi Cotton (Rs 450), shiffon (Rs 2,200) and Pashmina sarees. The pride of the stall is the Katan silk saree which has floral motifs.Also from West Bengal is Gautam Banerjee and his men with a fine collection of  fabric with just Kantha work on them. What stands out at the stall is dress material, both Kosa silk and tussar silk, with exquisite Kantha work done on them. And a special item in his collection is the smooth and elegant material in crepe with French knot done on them. This is just for the top and you can match it with a chudidar of yours.Then comes the traditional Benarasi silk sarees and dress materials. The latter comes in georgette brocade, Chanderi cotton and cotton silk. The artisans from Gujarat have brought cotton sarees, Khadi silk sarees, pure silk sarees, their traditional Patola silk sarees, along with readymade colourful blouses. Salwar sets (Rs 800 and up) and ladies tops in cotton and silk (Rs 450) also come from Gujarat.A veteran when it comes to the sale of Chanderi silk, it is the first visit for Shadat Ali to the capital city, from Madhya Pradesh. The Chanderi sarees are priced at Rs 900 and up and the dress materials come in the price range of Rs 1,400-1,600. Chanderi dupattas and cotton sarees are also available with him.The artisans from UP are all out wooing the women with their traditional stuff. And they flaunt the Tanchoi and Jamawar sarees with extreme pride. Jamawar is costlier than Tanchoi which is priced at Rs 12,500. “It takes 90 days to make this saree,” says Nasir from UP, showing the work on the Tanchoi silk saree. But is it a profitable affair, we ask? “If God wishes, everything will go on well. We are keeping only traditional stuff and we believe our efforts will be rewarded,” he says. Stalls and Jamdani sarees are also available with him.Bhagalpur salwar set (Rs 900), cotton silk and tussar silk dress materials, Ghicha silk sarees, shiffon sarees, Mulberry silk sarees, Manipur cotton sarees and handloom silk sarees are among the flood of  fabric kept for sale.Well, the expo is not just for women. Elegant shirts and kurtas in cotton and silk for men from Meerut in UP are there at the expo. While cotton shirts are priced at Rs 250, the silk variety costs Rs 450. Cotton kurtas cost Rs 350 and the silk kurtas Rs 550-850. Cute blouse-skirt set for little girls and kurta-pyjama for boys from Rajasthan and window and door curtains and cushions from Panipat in eye-soothing colours too vie for your attention at the expo.An artisan from Bangalore is at the fair with saree bags (priced at Rs 650, you can keep 12 sarees in one bag), jewellery bags, bangle bags, earring bags, purses, mirrors and 3D pictures. The traditional oil lamps from Muradabad made out of copper is another piece of attraction. “We come once a year to Kerala for sale. Last year we came to Kochi. We get wholesale orders and also export the items,” the artisan from Muradabad says.In spite of the fact that customers are coming in for the expo, one craftsman from West Bengal who have been to Thiruvananthapuram many times before was of the opinion that the venue of the expo should have been different. Nevertheless, the spread is so tempting that the city ought to come in for shopping at the expo which will conclude on July 10.