Bangalore's one of the oldest festival "Groundnut Fair' begins

Bangalore, Nov 20 (UNI) City's one of the oldest festival 'Kadalekai Parishe' (Groundnut Fair) has returned this time with much fanfare and increased participation by the people.

The two-day festival, involving heaps and heaps of groundnut of all varieties, began this morning after a formal pooja to the sacred Bull (Basava) in one of the oldest streets of the City. The entire area was kept colourful by shopkeepers as their effort to make the festival more attractive. It has all the trappings of a village fair where one could find hand operated giant wheels for kids, loads of cotton candy, sugar candy besides the freshly harvested groundnuts. Added to this is the innovative trading such as cloths, jute bags, masala groundnuts, colourful bangles and toys.

A visit to the area gives feeling that though the city has been recognised as one of the fastest growing metropolis in the world, the city was in no mood to give up its traditional practices. Scores of people, accompanied by their kids, throng the fair from neighbouring villages with a festival mood.

"It is not the sole intention of selling the groundnut we come here. We want to be a part of the fair and we fell proud about it," remarked 55-year-old Ramanna, a groundnut grower who had brought his produce from a far off village near Kanakapura.

"I keep coming here for the last 15 years and every year I return with good profit and I will never miss the fair in future also," said Akkamma, another grower who had participated in the fair along with her two children. For buyers too, this is the best opportunity to go in for the best groundnut and varieties of the produce. A large number of farmers from villages throng to the Parishe to sell their products such as raw groundnuts, salted and unsalted, light boiled and roasted.

According to sources more than 1000 sellers have put up their stalls and about 2000 quintals of groundnut would be sold during the two-day Fair.

It appears the city is not fit enough to give up its traditional festivals despite its rapid growth which has changed the shape. The festival has a legendary background according to which the Bull Temple area, where the fair would be held, was earlier a village called Sunkenahalli. Every year, a Bull used to appear before the harvest season and eat up all the groundnut crop. Farmers got together and tried to chase away the bull only to realise that it was the lord Shiva who came in the form of Bull to protect the crop.

The farmers decided to offer their first crop after the harvest every year and accordingly the fair is being held.

UNI MV/SR MSP GM1507