Providing a wide range of handlooms and handicrafts items to the people of the city, the National Handloom Expo which is underway at the Parade Ground is also helping the artisans connect with each other and earn good money.

Though many stalls have been set up in the expo, stall number 50 which has displayed saris from the state of Karnataka is grabbing attention for a special reason.

It is not just the silk saris which are attracting people towards the stall but its wedding collection which has saris costing up to Rs one lakh each. For the first time, the national expo has invited the artisans from Karnataka with their collection of silk saris.

“We have just one piece of each design in the wedding collection. The customer spends so much especially for an important occasion like wedding thus we make sure that no design is repeated,” said stall in-charge Sunil. He also informed that it takes four artisans to make one sari. It takes a lot of effort to do pure Zari work. 

 From Kanjeevaram to Mysore, Ikkat to Opara, the stall has a range of silk saris. It is for the first time that the sellers from Karnataka have been invited to set up a stall in the expo.

 “We have done good sales till now. The response we are getting in Dehradun is worth coming for again next year,” said Sunil. Other than Karnataka, stall numbers 55, 56 of West Bengal are also attracting a large number of people. As per those handling this stall, the price ranges from Rs 350 to Rs 4000 per item.

The collection varies from Ikkat silk, Chanderi, Jamdhani, cut work and Eri silk. While the Karnataka stall is eliciting visitors with its offer of ‘only one piece per design’ in the wedding design, the West Bengal stall is attracting visitors with the number of colours and range in one design. Artisans and weavers from various states have put up stalls in the national handloom expo.