Surajkund Mela is organised every year to encourage and nourish craft-based livelihoods, traditions, and tourism. It is helmed by the Department of Tourism, Government of Haryana and Surajkund Mela Authority in collaboration with Union Ministries of Tourism, Textiles, Culture and External Affairs. This year’s event will be concluding on February 19.
Surajkund Mela, dotted with deciduous flora, and nestled amid the rocky terrain of the Aravallis, is a melting pot of different cultures, bringing alive the diversity that characterises India. Its central focus is to offer a rich mélange of arts, crafts, local cuisines, traditions, and heritage to a global audience. Folk artists, dancers, musicians, and singers from different states of India represent the country’s rich cultural ethos. International performers and troupes, too, participate in this Mela, performing their craft, usually at the chaupals and amphitheatres. Live artists playing musical instruments, dancing to folk songs, and performing folk dances popularise their art forms to a city audience.
This year, one can witness several unique aspects at the Mela, with a special thrust given to advocacy and awareness around sustainability, conservation of cultural heritage, biodiversity, rich flora and fauna, citizen-centric governance, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
India’s ‘Ashtalakshmi’ and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation
The Surajkund fair is pivoted around a ‘theme state’ and a ‘partner country’ every year while encouraging participation from everywhere. This year, the theme state is represented by India’s “Ashtalakshmi” or the North Eastern Region. Endowed richly with natural resources and diverse flora and fauna, the northeastern region of India offers unique entrepreneurial acumen, rich indigenous knowledge, sustainability principles, environmental history, and ethics to a global audience with flavourful cuisines, colourful handicrafts, and indigenous talents.
With the G 20 meetings happening across Indian cities and towns this year as we mark India’s presidency, handicrafts and handlooms are important cultural statements that strengthen our soft diplomatic efforts and soft power. The partner organisation/country this year is the ‘Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)‘. This year India is hosting the SCO presidency until September 2023. Self-help groups (SHGs) from different Indian states and women’s groups and artisans from some member states of the SCO, and various other countries such as Sudan, South Sudan, Nigeria, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Ghana, Uganda, Nepal, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, among others, are hosting pavilions to showcase their unique cultures and traditions at the fair.
Bamboo paintings, Tripura and Assam
Baby Sarkar Poddar (48) from Agartala district, Tripura, is associated with Samarpan SHG. She, along with 50 other women, has been weaving bamboo, ‘tokoupaat’ or palm leaf, and making wooden carved paintings depicting Bihu dance from Assam and other art and dance forms from Tripura. Putting India’s ‘green gold’s versatility’ to use, there were lamp shades, furniture, fruit trays, vases made from bamboo, and other colourful home décor products. Another art form, which involves weaving a tray using bamboo and palm leaves, is referred to locally as ‘soop’ or ‘kulo’ with paintings of deities, and dance forms are also popular bamboo crafts. Natural hand fans, folding fans, or “Baans ka Pankha” were other old-school traditions grabbing attention.
Bhujodi shawls, Gujarat
Mayaben (50) has been associated with the glorious Bhujodi weaves and shawls for 36 years. Over the years, artisans have used cotton and other fabrics to make beautiful mirror works apart from traditional wool. Coming from Bhujodi village in the Kutch region of Gujarat, Bhujodi shawls are popular for their mirrored embroidery work, usage of ‘cowrie’ shells, tie and dye technique, and Bandhani art on woollen fabrics and textiles. Available in shades of red, black, blue, and white with embroidered patterns, Bhujodi shawls are also famously known as the ‘Kachchh’/Kutchi shawls and have the Geographical Indication (GI) tag from the district.
Jaapi hats, jewellery, and crafts, Assam
Alongside the rich bamboo furniture and other forms of craft, the ‘Jaapi’ hats from Assam were another attraction at the Mela. Jaapi is an important cultural symbol from the state and has diversified over the years from plain bamboo-coloured Jaapi to having designs in hues of red, white, blue, green, and yellow. It is worn in Bihu dance, used extensively by farmers, and is also a favourite present used in diplomacy from the state. Intricately woven with bamboo, and palm leaves, the traditional Jaapi hats are also decorated with mirrors and other decorative embroideries.
Inspired by its cultural significance, Jaapi designs are now increasingly used in earrings and jewellery- made out of wood and painted in traditional black and red. Other Jaapi handicrafts titled “pride of Assam” with the single horned rhino, musical instruments, and carvings from the jungle also add to product diversification here.
Onyx marble and stone crafts, Afghanistan
Onyx marble and stone crafts are unique as they showcase the individual layers of each stone with which they are made. With each layer, one can see the magnificence of each marble or stone and the deposits formed over the years under the layers. Available in yellow, brown, beige, green, and white hues – onyx handicrafts, home décor, large vases, and small utensils – all in natural colours of stone were a major attraction among visitors.
Earthenware and Pottery, Tunisia
The pavilion with Tunisian wooden artefacts and handicrafts, alongside Tunisian pottery, was another attraction at the Mela. Originating from Nabeul, the ceramic capital of Tunisia, and quite similar to the delicate blue pottery work from Rajasthan in its appearance, this art form uses Mandala designs in blues, reds, yellows, and greens.
Kotpad saris and shawls, Odisha
Next to the Sambalpuri Ikat saris were the handwoven, elegant Kotpad shawls and saris in their full glory from the Koraput district of Odisha. Available in beautiful shades of white, rust orange, maroon, grey, blue, and yellow with border designs and stitching patterns in red and light colours, these weaves have the famous ‘machli’ and temple designs. One Kotpad sari takes about six days to be woven entirely, an artisan mentioned.
Lepcha weaves, Sikkim
Traditionally, Lepcha weaving was done using the fibre from nettle leaf or sisnu. However, over time, weaving started to be done using fabrics and textiles. Bags, masks, pencil cases, purses, wallets, and jackets, are some trendy Lepcha handloom products favourite among students, in particular. Locally, these handlooms are also called ‘Thara’.
Other handlooms and crafts such as Naga shawls, Kullu shawls, Jamdani Dhakai sarees, Kalamkari lamps, wall hangings, Kathputli crafts from Rajasthan, wooden idols of deities, selfie-corners, ‘Apna Ghar’ pavilion from the state of Haryana showcasing the indigenous ‘Peedha’ weaving from the state, bird nests are woven from eco-friendly materials, stuffed toys, grass-flowers, and culinary delights, pickles, and the millet-haat were other major attractions at the fair. Trees decorated with floral hangings, chimes, and lanterns added to the festive vibe.
Message on sustainability, environmental ethics, and citizen-centric governance
In addition to strengthening India’s soft power potential through arts and crafts, the Mela focused on messages and slogans on sustainability, biodiversity conservation, and environmental protection making it more holistic, while contributing to several targets envisaged under the different Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Handlooms and handicrafts are closely interlinked with natural resources and contribute to forest-based and agricultural livelihoods. Such interdependencies in the wake of climate change and growing vulnerabilities necessitate efforts to contribute to environment-centric and citizen-centric governance.
Environmental advocacy through A/V, posters, and hoardings in partnership with several organisations around responsible consumption and production (contributing to SDG 12), climate action (SDG 13) and UNESCO-dedicated screens featuring unique aspects from India’s Ashtalakshmi states – added a unique dimension to the fair, thus encouraging people’s participation in issues concerning the environment, local livelihoods, eco-tourism, and policy.
For instance, messages on the “Apatani” cultural landscape from Arunachal Pradesh, Kaziranga National Park, Assam, and postcards on rare species of flora and fauna from the region in addition to other initiatives, all found their place at the Mela this year. Bamboo figures hugging trees with captions such as “embrace nature,” hand-painted all-17 SDGs, awareness about the Government of India’s Swachh Bharat campaign, and water conservation – all contributed to the overall ideals of “communications for development” clubbing environmental awareness and citizen-centric governance in public policy.
Such initiatives at Melas and fairs seeing a large tourist footfall, especially after two turbulent years of COVID-19-induced disruptions, provide for important public spaces where social messaging around the environment, climate change, and social development can have a manifold impact. Handlooms and handicrafts play an essential role in India’s economic development and sustainable livelihoods, providing the second largest employment after agriculture in rural India. Realising the vast potential of this sector, the Budget 2023 announced the ‘Pradhan Mantri Vishwakarma Kaushal Samman,’ a holistic scheme dedicated to advancing craftspersons and artisans.
In addition to financial assistance and skill upgradation, it is also time to introduce dedicated programmes on social skills such as confidence-building measures, spoken languages, etc. Inviting artisans and SHG members to annual conferences and seminars organized by Ministries is also an effective way of outreach and encouraging communities. By showcasing an amalgamation and confluence of different cultures, fairs like Surajkund contribute to overall efforts around ‘Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat,’ and the philosophy of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbkum’.
