Already seven days in, the 10-day 12th National Craft Mela at Kalagram is yet to see the rousing footfall it was familiar with before the Covid-19 pandemic struck.
Returning after a two-year gap due to the outbreak, the craft mela was expected to see at least somewhere close to the 82,000 people it had entertained in 2019.
But much to the vendors’ disappointment, the footfall this year has been a meagre 13,000, a far cry from the 2.5 lakh visitors in the fair’s first edition in 2009.
With the last three days of the fair coinciding with the weekend, the vendors, who have paid ₹18,000 rent for 10 days, are hoping against hope to make up the losses incurred.
As many as 170 stalls have been set up at the fair by craftsmen from across the country. But despite the rich array of exhibits on offer, the fair’s alleys have remained deserted. Even, the evening cultural shows, which feature singers, have failed to attract crowds.
Vendors have blamed the UT department of cultural affairs and the North Zone Cultural Centre (NZCC), that have organised the fair, for failing to adequately promote it.
“The authorities did not do much to market the mela. They even failed to install a promised joyride,” said Anurag Singh Rana, a vendor, who has set up four food stalls at a cost of ₹5 lakh. “I have suffered a loss of ₹4 lakh in the past seven days, with little hope of recovering my money. The way things were handled, I don’t feel the vendors would want to return the next year,” he added.
{{/usCountry}}“The authorities did not do much to market the mela. They even failed to install a promised joyride,” said Anurag Singh Rana, a vendor, who has set up four food stalls at a cost of ₹5 lakh. “I have suffered a loss of ₹4 lakh in the past seven days, with little hope of recovering my money. The way things were handled, I don’t feel the vendors would want to return the next year,” he added.
{{/usCountry}}The morning rain on Tuesday, the fifth day of the fair, and subsequent sludge also kept visitors away. “Due to the rain, all my carpets got drenched. It has been two days since the rain, but even now my products have not dried. I have not even earned enough to recover the rent,” said Safaullah, who deals in carpets.
When contacted Farquan Khan, director, NZCC, said, “The fair used to be a highly awaited event in Chandigarh every year. So, even we are not sure, why people are not turning up.”
Vinod P Kavle, secretary, culture, UT, said, “The artisans requested us to hold the mela before Diwali to elicit good response from shoppers. We met their demand, but the footfall has remained low. It needs to be reviewed why there has been such a major drop in visitors.”
Lack of novelty and high traffic on the Chandigarh-Panchkula road, where Kalagram is located, could be other reasons behind the poor response.
“Every year, the same craftsmen offer the same products. Overall too, the fair has no originality. The UT administration should come with innovative ideas to make the mela successful,” said VP Singh, a retired professor from PEC, who visited the fair on Thursday.
Another visitor from Panchkula, who didn’t wish to be named, said Kalagram was already quite far from central Chandigarh and the ever-increasing volume of traffic on the Chandigarh-Panchkula road had also discouraged people from heading to the fair.