Celebs to touch glamour to handloom expo

Kolkata: The Manipur Handlooms and Handicrafts Development Corporation is planning to organise a fashion show in the city in March to showcase the artisans` work of the north-eastern region. "We plan to rope in the big names in fashion designing of north-east to choreograph the show and we are depending on the feedback from the discerning Kolkata customers and the people in showbiz here at the ongoing National Handloom Expo in your city," Managing Director of Manipur Handlooms and Handicrafts Development Corporation W. Nilamani Singh told reporters here. About the presence of Tollywood personalites to grace the inauguration of expo, which is being organised by Manipur Handloom and Handicrafts Development Corporationb at Garia in the southern fringes, Singh said this could help the weavers and other artisans interact with the city cognoscenti. Bengali TV channel star and upcoming big screen actor Sonali Choudhury found the works varied and amazing and hoped such shows would help the traditional weavers interact with the consumers. "I went around the stalls and found the patterns very exquisite," Choudhury, the lead actor in a feature film on a recent real life molestation-murder incident, said. Singh, who found the Garia location very exciting as it was a happening place, said since few of the over 60 stalls were ready, "we would like to invite them again after some days when all the stalls will be ready. The Director, Textiles, West Bengal Ashis Chakraborty said some of the weaver societies of the state will put on display their wares in the next few days in the expo. "Such an expo will help handloom developers in developing the right product mix and showcase their stuff," he said. The expo, which was also graced by two other small screen actors at last evening`s inauguration will continue till December 31. About 70 weaver societies, apart from Manipur and north-eastern state Assam, were taking part in the show including Orissa, Bihar, Jharkhand, Maharashtra. PTI