A report on my Educational Visit to Surajkund Mela 2019

1. 1
REPORT ON
VISIT TO SURAJKUND MELA 2019
VISITED ON 13.2.2019
SUBMITTED BY
TASRIFA SULTANA HAZARIKA
SUBMITTED TO
DR. HIMANI CHOUDHARY
MA 4TH SEMESTER
SCHOOL OF DESIGN AND VISUAL ARTS (FASHION)
APEEJAY STYA UNIVERSITY
Enrolment No. ASU2018030200216

2. 2
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION..............................................................................3
1. OBJECTIVES..........................................................................4
2. FEATURES OF THE MELA.................................................4
3. THE AMBIENCE....................................................................5
4. HANDICRAFT STALLS........................................................5
4.1 TEXTILES...........................................................................5-7
 FABRICS..............................................................................................6
 EMBROIDERIES.................................................................................7
4.2 PAINTINGS........................................................................7-8
4.3 OTHER CRAFT.................................................................8-10
 WOODCRAFTS....................................................................................8
 CLAY AND TERRACOTA..................................................................8
 LAMPS...................................................................................................9
 BAMBOO AND CANE WORK...........................................................9
 TOYS.....................................................................................................10
4.4 ACCESSORIES....................................................................10-11
5. AMUSEMENT.................................................................................11
6. CONCLUSION.................................................................................11
7. MY OBSERVATION......................................................................12
8. STILLS FROM THE FAIRGROUND..........................................12
BROCHURE OF SURAJKUND MELA 2019

3. 3
INTRODUCTION
Type: International crafts fair
Location: Surajkund, Faridabad, Haryana
Celebrated During: 1st Feb to 17th February
Main Attractions: Rich showcase of regional and international crafts and traditions
Area: 40 acres with about 1010 stalls
Organised By: Surajkund Mela Authority in collaboration with the Union Ministries of
Tourism, Textiles, Culture, External Affairs, Department of Tourism, Government of
Haryana and Haryana Tourism Corporation
First Hosted In: 1987
Visitors Timing: 10.00 am to 7.00pm
Figure1: inside Surajkund Mela
A celebration of Indian folk tradition and rich cultural heritage, the Surajkund Mela is
organised from the first week of February every year in Surajkund, Faridabad. The
Surajkund Mela is unique as it showcases the richness and diversity of the handicrafts,
handlooms and fabrics of India, including international handicrafts and it is called the largest
crafts fair in the world. This Mela also includes A large number of renowned national and
international folk artists and cultural groups that presents their performances and a numerous
food stalls that serves cuisines from different states of India. There are designated places for
amusement, adventure sports and joy rides too.
There are International participants of the Mela including Africa, Thailand, Armenia and
Iran which deals in variety of products including handicrafts. This time the state Maharashtra
has been chosen as the theme state for the craft fair and the crafts of the state has been
highlighted. Thailand is the partner country for the 33rd season of Surajkund Mela 2019.
There are beautiful paintings, silk fabrics, silver ware, pottery, puppets and sculptures which
represent Thailand’s culture.

4. 4
OBJECTIVES
 To observe the rich cultural heritage of India through visiting craft stalls.
 To find different types of handicrafts belong to each state of India.
 To interact with the shopkeepers/artisans to get a virtual tour of their crafts and find
the problem areas.
 To get a clear vision of international crafts and cultural heritage through visiting the
fair.
FEATURES OF SURAJKUND MELA
1. Showcase of rich handcrafted goods and products that shows the fine craftsmanship
and creativity of the artists belonging to different regions, states and countries. For
example the Phulkari embroidery from Punjab, Kantha stitched outfits from West
Bengal; Pattachitra painting from Odhisa were showcased in the fair. The products
that are installed in the stalls are
 Textiles and embroideries
 Paintings
 Items made from wood, ivory, stonework, lacquer ware, cane, grass, metal craft,
candles, soaps.
 Pottery
 Home decor
 Organic cosmetics and skin care products
2. Open air performances of folk performing arts such as dance, music of different
regions were shown there.
Figure 2 and 3: People performing folk arts
3. The Theme state for 2019 Surajkund Mela is Maharashtra where the vibrant culture
and heritage were shown right from the entry gate. The theme state for the Mela
changes every year, for the last year the theme state was Uttar Pradesh. They have
chosen Thailand as partner country for 33rd Surajkund international fair.
4. A great platform to interact with the skilled artisans from different parts of the
country who has expertise in traditional craft-making skills and taking the legacy
forward to preserve the art-forms of the regions they belong.
5. There are musical evenings with amusement sports and joyrides along with cuisines
from different region, state and country.

5. 5
THE AMBIENCE
Fig 4, 5, 6 : ambience of the mela
The ambience of the fair was an eye catching; decorative pieces hanging from the trees and
gates of different states. There was Chattisgarh gate, prototype of typical Haryana houses,
wall arts and more than 1000 stalls including handicrafts, food and fabrics.
HANDICRAFT STALLS
There were stalls of each state of India and outside countries representing their arts and crafts
in the fair. They have a unique collection of fabric and accessories that one might not find
anywhere else. From Iranian carpets to lanterns to beautifully carved wooden furniture, the
handicrafts in the fair are from all around the world. Here are the products that I have seen in
the fair
 TEXTILES
India is rich in textiles and each state of the country has its own textiles, fabrics and
embroideries. In Surajkund Mela we got to see different types of fabrics and embroideries
which have its own unique characteristics, for example we saw Chikan embroidery from
Lucknow, Kantha embroideried sarees from West Bengal, Pachmina shawls from Kashmir
etc. there were readymade Kurtis shawls, Dupattas, sarees and fabrics for home furnishing
like carpets, bed sheets etc. Moreover there were fabric rolls in cotton, khadi, brocade,
georgette, different verities of silk etc.
.
Fig7, fig8: Traditional weaving method in a loom

6. 6
FABRICS
Fig9: pure Pachmina shawls from Kashmir fig10: readymade kurtis saris
Fig11: Patch embroidery fromGujarat Fig12: fabricsfromGujarat
fig13: Dupattas fromRajasthan fig14: tie and dye bedsheets fromRajasthan
Fig 15 and 16 : Carpets

7. 7
Fig17: Kantha embroidery Fig18: chikankari work Fig19: Gujarati embroidery
Fig 20 and 21: wooden blocks for block printing
Besides this Indian textiles and embroideries, there were fabrics from South Africa and
Thailand which was a totally new experience for us to see the fabrics of other countries.
 PAINTINGS
Folk Paintings are a very important part of every state of India and each state has a very
diverse history of its paintings where paintings of each state has similarities and differences
between them and this is one of the factors that makes India a land of unity in Diversity.
These are the paintings that I found in the craft fair.
Fig 22 and 23: Madhubani painting from Bihar Fig 24: saura painting from Odhisa

8. 8
Fig25:Pattachitra painting fig26:bommala painting fig 27:Kalighat painting from W.B
 OTHER CRAFTS
There were craft items made from wood, earthenware, ivory, stonework, lacquer ware, cane,
grass, metal craft, candles, paper mashed crafts etc
WOODCRAFTS
Fig 28,29,30,31: wood crafts
There were stalls of woodcrafts for interiors and home decor where most of the crafts were
from Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh and ‘Chikri’ woodcraft from Jammu and Kashmir.
CLAY AND TERRACOTTA
Fig 32, 33, 34, 35: terracotta crafts
Kangra in Himachal Pradesh, Pokhran in Rajasthan, Meerut and Harpur in Uttar Pradesh,
Kanpur in Maharashtra, Kutch in Gujarat, Jahjjar in Haryana, Birbhum in Bengal and

9. 9
Manipur are famous for their special styles in pottery. We found almost all of the states
pottery work in the fair. There was also clay utensils from Turkey displayed in the stalls
LAMPS
Fig 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41: lamps
Lamps were one of the points of attraction the visitors of the fair. There were goat leather
lamps from Karnataka (fig40) along with colourful Turkish lamps displayed in the fair (fig
37, 38, 39).
BAMBOO AND CANE WORK
.
Fig 42, 43, 44, 45: bamboo and cane craft
The north-eastern states of India including Assam, Manipur and Tripura are famous for
producing bamboo and cane crafts. There were unique bamboo and cane products for home
decoration in the fair.

10. 10
TOYS
Fig 46, 47, 48: toys
Fig 49, 50,51: toys from different parts of the world
There were toys from Rajasthan (fig46, 47), South Africa (fig50), Armenia (fig49) made
from fabric, pottery and paper mashes.
Other products including scented candles, organic skincare products from China etc.
ACCESSORIES
Fig 52, 53, 54: earrings and bangles
Fig 55, 56, 57: sandals, jute bags, beaded jewelleries.

11. 11
Fig 58 and 59: beaded jewelleries, fig 60: clutchbags
There were accessories from different part of the country and overseas, from Banjara silver
jewelleries from Rajasthan to the trending styles of tassel earrings; beaded Jewelleries,
Kolhapuri shoes, bags, bangles of different materials like lacquer, metal and glass.
AMUSEMENTS
Fig 61,62,63: amusements of the fair ground
The Mela has all kind of amusements for different aged groups of people. There were also
some multi cuisine food stalls to please the appetite of the visitors. There were bioscopes for
children, giant wheel, helicopter rides and free e-rickshaw rides for senior citizens.
CONCLUSION
Surajkund Mela is surely one of the largest and most interesting fairs in India. Further, it is a
delightful treat for visitors who can get an opportunity to familiarize themselves with
artefacts, performing arts and traditional dance forms and cuisines from India. It is therefore
very popular with Indians and foreign tourists. The vibrancy of the fair attracts every age
group of people who come to enjoy the cultural richness of India. The Surajkund fair
organisers pick one Indian State every year, which is showcased as the Theme State of the
year. The basic idea is to pay special attention to one Indian State and exhibit the textiles, art
and crafts of that State. This helps in bringing uniqueness to the fair as there is a new theme
introduced every year. The most noteworthy or significant aspect is that the organisers invite
national award winning artists regularly to participate in the Mela. Almost all the stall

12. 12
owners are award winning artists. Consequently, the products on display are of superior
quality that befits the artisans. Handicrafts, paintings, carpets, home decor, fragrant soaps,
Ayurvedic products, items made from ivory, cane and grass, pottery, textiles saris, salwar
suit pieces and stoles, the Surajkund Mela 2019 has it all.
MY OBSERVATION
Being a design student this is one of my greatest opportunities to visit the mela and take a
tour into the cultural heritage of India along with the other countries. This visit is definitely
going to help me in my future. Through the visit I became familiar with some lesser known
artforms of India which I will hardly get to see in my region. I have noticed the fine quality
and perfection of the products that were displayed in the fair. For some regional products the
price is very much reasonable at the same time the products from outside India were
expensive. The fair is one of the proper places to invest money and buy some unique
products for wearing and decoration which directly and indirectly helps in the survival uplift
of artforms and artisans. I am expressing my thankfulness and pleasure to my mentor and
dean ma’am for giving me chance to go to the fair and guiding me in the same. Overall it
was a good learning experience of Visiting Surajkund Mela 2019.
STILLS FROM
THE
FAIRGROUND