BANGALORE: Hastakala, the annual arts and crafts mela organised by Manya, a non-profit organisation was set up at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishat (CKP), on February 17. The mela was inaugurated by Sri Govind M Karjol, Minister For Kannada and Culture.
The mela which was spread across the campus of CKP had stalls selling various types of arts and crafts. The exhibition was a one-stop destination to meet all the artists and artisans personally from across the nation. From eatables to antique furniture and from unbreakable plastic to clay idols, it was a perfect place to do all festival shopping for this term. Apart from this, soft furniture, paper products, jewellery, toys, paintings, terra-cotta products, dresses for women and shirts for men were few things that one could spot among various other arts and crafts that were displayed.
Vinshu Soni, a stall owner said, “This Mela is well organised. It connects the artists and people directly. It is a great opportunity for us to exhibit our talent as well learn the demands of people. Apart from just selling paintings here, I also conduct painting classes for students of all ages. I give them a crash course on gold, marble and ceramic painting, which I do not conduct in any other art exhibitions.”
The mela witnessed over 100 hundred stalls, each representing the culture of their state. On display, were the artifacts of all forms from almost all the states of India, majority being from the northern region.
However, there were also few stalls from Tamil Nadu and also Karnataka. The eye-catcher in the exhibition were the blue pottery from the northern part of the country, 24 carat gold painting on old paper from Jaipur and miniature paintings from Rajasthan. Apart from these stalls, the bright colors under the sun and the quick food stalls made it an ideal place for a family outing. Jayanth Nazre, the president of Manya says, “We are conducting Hastakala for the third consecutive year in the city. The last two years we received great response from the people. This year too we are hoping the same.”
He added, “Exhibitions like this will help the artists across India to showcase their talent without the interference of the middlemen. This initiative is to revive the culture and support artisans and craftsman with this venture.” The exhibition will remain open till the February 26 at CKP.