Experience a slice of Odia food and crafts in Hyderabad

A The two-day mela by Kalinga Swaraj Women’s Wing, (KSWW), celebrates Odisha’s food, textiles and culture

Hyderabad may be familiar with handlooms from Odisha, but Odia cuisine is still unchartered. That is set to change as Shilparamam in Madhapur hosts the city’s first Odia Food and Craft Mela for two days in association with Kalinga Swaraj Women’s Wing (KSWW). As Shilpramam dons the look of a mini Odisha village, visitors will be introduced to Odisha’s food and textiles as well as the State’s culture with dance performances at the amphitheatre in the evenings.

Sasmita Mishra, Odissi dancer and founder of Nrutya Puri Dance Academy in Manikonda, says that Hyderabad has had handicraft exhibitions with stalls displaying Sambhalpuri saris from Odisha, but this is the first time Odia food gets prominence. “This mela is a treasure trove of indigenous Odisha arts and crafts and its cuisine; it is also an opportunity for the five lakh Odiyas living in Hyderabad to cherish their home state ” says Susmita, also vice-president of KSWW.

The exhibition aims at providing Odisha weavers and artisans a good marketplace to sell their wares. “Handmade Sambhalpuri saris in natural colours is a slice of Odisha’s aesthetic wealth. It takes 15 days to weave a sari but their business is going down. Some small-time weavers resort to working as daily wage labourers for a livelihood. The idea is to make the artisans self-reliant, give them a chance to showcase their products and help them scale up,” says Sasmita and observes that the season is perfect for this exhibition. “It is the auspicious month of Magh in the Indian calendar when the colours of spring are enjoyed by all. Everyone likes to go out and shop before the harsh summer is upon us.”

With 10 stalls each for arts and crafts and food, the display includes Sambhalpuri and Berhampuri silks, brass utensils, wall hangings, pipli work on bedsheets, chandeliers and wall hangings and a unique millet tea stall run by Jagannath Chinary.

The stalls of Odia sweets and snacks will be a treat , promises Sasmita. From the famous Cuttack style dahi bara aloo dum and stuffed rice flour pitha to the popular Chhena Poda, the items will delight those with a sweet tooth.

Odia bhajans and songs and tribal dance by a 16-member troupe will be held in the evenings.

“As a Prabhasi Odia living in Hyderabad for the past seven years, we have been celebrating our festivals such as Raja Prabha and Utkala Dibas (Odisha State formation day) in Hyderabad but this is the first time that we are organising something on such a large scale,” says Sasmita.