A fair with tokens of rich cultural heritage may offer an escape to the city dwellers from the din and bustle of daily life in the metropolis. Bengal Shilpalaya in Dhanmondi, hosting a crafts fair, may just be the place for art and craft enthusiasts to visit.
Organsied jointly by Bengal Foundation and National Crafts Council of Bangladesh, the three day craft fair began on Thursday and features 12 shops displaying a whole range of crafts made from various materials like brass, jute, bamboo, cane, cotton, metal, wood etc. Few of the stalls also display rickshaw paintings and clay artworks, reminding the visitors about the country’s rich diversity in art.
The venue thronged with visitors who came to the fair for an experience as well as to purchase diverse craft products of different price ranges. In one shop, Ataing Marma from Rangamati is selling his beautifully handcrafted cane baskets with intricate weaving.
A bamboo flute maker from Jhenaidah, Kamol Chandra Sarkar has on display flutes in various lengths: small ones that are about six inches long to large one which are about two feet in length. Not only in terms of size, the flutes are also diverse in their colours and designs and range in price from Taka 50 to Taka 500. ‘It gives me immense pleasure to be able to display my flutes for the dwellers of capital Dhaka,’ said Sarkar to New Age.
Parvin Akter from Comilla is selling kurta-punjabis, bed sheets and other products made of khadi, a thick traditional hand-made fabric. The comfortable dresses and bed sheet with geometrical designs drew a large crowd of visitors to her shop. ‘The price of kurta-punjabis and other products range from Taka 600 to Taka 1200,’ informed Akter, who also revealed that her profession is at stake because of the growing prominence of the mechanical textile industry.
Residents of the capital gathered at the fair all day long. Sharmin Mahmud, a home-maker from Dhanmondi, came with her son to the fair. ‘Although these types of crafts are also available in the local market, but purchasing these products directly from the traditional artistes is a great experience for me,’ said Sharmin.
Jinia Haque Juthi, a university student who visited the fair with her friends, on the other hand, shared that since she found the products to be very reasonably priced, she was likely to buy a few hand-made bed covers from the fair.
Four craft artistes were awarded with Best Mastercraftpersons Award-2013 conferred by Bengal Foundation. Secretary of the cultural affairs ministry Ranajit Kumar Biswas handed over the crests and an amount of Taka 50,000 each to the following winners: Jaynal Abedin from Narsinghdi for home textiles, Rafiqul Islam from Sutrapur for rickshaw painting, Sankari Tudu from Rajshashi for home art and Parvin Akter from Noakhali for handloom.
-With New Age input
