Annual Tilonia Bazaar at Triveni Kala Sangam

Tillonia Bazaar or exhibition at Triveni is a regular event held each year before Diwali. The first going back to 1975. I though, visited it for the first time, this year..sounds rather silly for someone who has been living in Delhi for so long and has written so much about crafts. Actually, Diwali is such a busy time and so much happens that it is very difficult to catch it all. Nevertheless, Tilonia Bazaar was wonderful, bazaarish yet intimate and friendly.

Tilonia is a small village in Rajasthan ( around 426 kms from Delhi), a driving distance of 7 hours. It is known for The Barefoot College (Social Work Research Centre)  started by Bunker Roy in 1972.. It is synonymous with this place. The journey of The Barefoot College, its goals, its progress towards self reliance, using solar power and the individual achievements of Mr. Bunker Roy and his wife Mrs. Aruna Roy (yes of the RTI fame!) is mind boggling. The Barefoot College empowers rural communities in water, energy, health and education – more importantly it trains women across the world in solar energy. How to harness solar energy for growth. The focus is to use simple concepts to create a sustainable model. The key is grassroot development by the creation of micro entrepreneurs. A lot of craft traditions which have been lost have been revived and the traditions include block printing, embroidery, quilting and more.

The Bazaar started in Delhi at Triven in 1975. The story is as shared by their website – www.tiloniabazaar.org. It was the likes of Kamaladevi Chattopadyay, Pupul Jayakar, Shona Roy and several others that a bazaar be held to sell the products made and thus started a journey.

Without sounding prejudiced, the bazaar is brilliant and very affordable. The products comprising clothes, home décor, home linen, bags including leather, toys and upcycled stationery are beautiful.

Where – Triveni Kala Sangam, 205 Tansen Marg,  Todermal Road Area, Mandi House, Delhi, New Delhi, Delhi 110001

Timing – Usually it is before Diwali. It was between 10^th to 13^th 2025 from 11 am to 8 pm.

Highlight -  The clothes are great especially kurtas, tank tops over jeans. Home furnishing material and puppets. I did not explore too much but very satisfied with my pick of kurta with parallels and a brilliant readymade blouse. It is wonderful to wander around the stalls picking and interacting with like minded craft lovers. Each level offers something unique and I enjoyed every moment of it knowing that it is all for a good cause.

Insider tip – The sellers are extremely helpful and keep goading you to buy more so that they can come the next year with better products. The clothes are sized accurately and one can blindly pick up one’s size as per retail norms. The colour combinations and stylization is perfect.  The AC Blankets in hand block printing is beautiful as also the cutwork applique, be it the cushions or bedspareads.