KOCHI: With just days for Vishu festival, the Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) is organising ‘Mahila Market’ — a trade fair promoting women entrepreneurs — at one of its busiest stations, Edapally. Launched on Tuesday, the three-day expo has 25 stalls by women entrepreneurs, selling and displaying food items, health products, cosmetics, etc.
A one-stop shop for women, a wide range of products -- from healthy and organic food items to chemical-free cosmetics products such as Kajal, lip balm, neem combs, etc -- have been lined up for sale at the market.
Apart from these, clothing items, including churidar materials, sarees, and kurtas, are also available at a reasonable rate. “The stalls look interesting, and the price of the items is reasonable,” said Gauri Krishna, a metro passenger.
An integral part of the Vishu festival is the ‘sadhya’, which is incomplete without the banana chips, pickles, and Sharkara Upperi. They too are available at the market. “The snack items look fresh. Homemade masala powders, coconut oil and ghee are also on sale at the expo,” said Ambika Nair, a metro passenger who is planning to visit the market on Wednesday also to check out the textile stalls.
The market also has a stall for organic vegetables. “I came to check out the vegetables, and they look fresh. The rates too are reasonable, and I ended up purchasing a little extra,” said Sheela Thomas, a homemaker.
Most of the entrepreneurs had been part of the first Mahila Market organised by KMRL at Vytilla metro station in March. “Compared to the first market, the sale was comparatively less on the first day. We hope it will improve in the coming days,” said one of the women entrepreneurs, who does not wish to be named.