By Mrittika Banerjee

Copyright deccanchronicle

Hyderabad:A row of bright handwoven baskets greets visitors at the entrance of Indira Mahila Shakti Bazaar, beside Shilparamam in Madhapur. QR codes propped up on counters, and the clink of terracotta as a pottery wheel turns. This is the (Sale of Articles of Rural Artisans Society) Fair 2025, a national marketplace for women’s self-help groups, where officials say every stall is reserved for SHG entrepreneurs only and there is no middleman.“One hundred per cent benefit goes to the artisan,” says Soujanya, special officer, Indira Mahila Shakti Bazaar. Another adds a banker’s detail that explains the confidence behind the experiment. “There is only two per cent non-payment. Ninety-eight per cent repayments are regular,” say officials at the bazaar, including PW Johnson, Director, (non-farm) SERP.The venue, right next to Shilparamam, was earlier a night bazaar for tech workers before the government converted it into a permanent women’s market with 106 shutters. The footfall for the fair on Sunday alone touched about 9,500 and is only expected to grow especially with programmes lined up in the latter half of the week. This also includes a visit by Governor Jishnu Dev Varma. Speaking of the Governor, the North Eastern Pavilion is one of the major attractions of the fair including stalls from Governor’s state Tripura. “All our products are handloom and purely handmade,” says Champabati Dutta, who travelled from Tripura with fellow weaver Namita Dutta.Nearby, a young woman from Nagaland lists what she has sewn and woven. “I brought Naga handloom waistcoats, shawls, neckties and mufflers. This crochet sandal is handmade by me and my mum.”Assam adds eri silk and herbal powders. “We work with women farmers and make natural products like hibiscus, reetha, henna and amla. Sixteen items, no preservatives,” says Phungjwa Brahma, CEO of Bubli Samridhi Mahila Kisan Producer Company in Kokrajhar.Punjab lines up phulkari and Punjabi juttis, and a Hyderabad company offers eco-friendly lifestyle goods, including cork organisers and a bamboo-cased steel flask. Modern sleek designs in this stall include laptop bags to ceramic lookalike coffee mugs that are sold at quite an affordable rate. “It is eco-friendly, it looks like ceramic, this way I get my Instagram aesthetic and that too at an affordable rate,” exclaims a shopper, Nandini. The counter that perhaps deserves the respect and attention belongs to D. Mallesha, a blind artisan from Nagarkurnool who keeps his fingers moving through plastic wire as he speaks. “If I stop, I will make a mistake. Only when I keep the same pace will the bag be perfect.” His baskets are priced between Rs 350 and Rs 900. He buys the wire with pension money and sells it to keep his small business going. “While I was studying in Gadwal, Someshwara madam taught me basket weaving. She said even if I miss out on a job, I can depend on this skill, and she taught me with that hope,” he adds.The fair also brings live pottery run by Lakshmi of Kumari Mahila Sangam in Tellapur. “Make tiny pots and take them for Rs 100,” she smiles.SARAS runs till September 29 and entry is free. Stalls open from 10.30 am and stay active till 9.30 pm. What stands out at the fair is that all the proceeds go to stakeholders alone. As one organiser put it, “This is not charity. These are entrepreneurs proving that if they are given space and respect, they can hold their own in the market.”