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 bedspreads.

 

 

Central Market, DDA Flats Kalkaji

I know, all of us love shopping markets. These days, one would root for the malls and their airconditioned confines.  But there are lot of these neighbourhood markets where things are still old fashioned. Several long forgotten things are available off the shelf. They are affordable, offer you fresh products and the variety is mind boggling. It does remind you of what Delhi once was, with its wide roads and little traffic and of course the friendly neighbourhood shops especially the Kirana ones!

This one is called DDA Flats Kalkaji, mini market. It is at a walking distance from the main DTC bus depot. This bus depot was our mainstay for U Specials during good old DU days! The market is referred to as mini market. It has a small group of about 30 to 40 odd shops. And the shops between them offer a lot. Of course, the attitude of the shopkeepers is brisk, no nonsense, no bargaining but the range is interesting. There are a couple of bakeries offering fresh products, a couple of cloth shop. Yes, you do get your fabric by the meter and there is a veritable range. From the astar or lining cloth, poplin, rubia, falls for saree, blouse pieces, cotton fabrics for everyday wear, curtain cloth, sofa cloth, gamcha, handkerchiefs, dupatta and oh yes they are affordable. There is fancy odds and end shop too. The is where one can get lace for stitching, dori for blouses, buttons, dori for pouches, coloured yarn and more. A couple of stationery shops, printing press. There is a good ole chakki, where one can get chakki atta ground just in front of you and it is hot. I think, they also let you take your own mix of grains! So any diehard multi-grain follower or grain-lentil flour master, this place is good for getting your own recipe or measurement ground. There are a couple of good tailors – reasonable and good. A bartan or vessel shop to buy steel and brass utensils. I have picked up a silbatta from here! There is a razai wala family across the road, who make pure cotton mattresses, cushions, floor cushions, razais and more! Next to it is the typical South Indian – Kerala shop selling a lot of items from Kerala.

Where – Just less than 0.10 kms from DTC bus stop. One has to turn right from the corner Taxi Stand called Gahunia and proceed straight and the market will be to the right. There will be a large number of carts selling fresh fruits and vegetables. Believe me, walking down the road is a bit of a nightmare though!

Timings – Open 10 am to evening 7 pm. Several shops open at 8 am especially the bakery. The rest though is laid back. Several do close in the afternoons too. Tuesday the market is closed and the shopkeepers take their holiday seriously!  So the market is closed.

Highlights – The kirana shops at the back sell a lot of Kachris or fry ums. One can get macroni, chips, vrat aloo chips and more. They also stock vadiyans and chillies. The razai wala called Popular mattress is skilled in making all kinds of cushions inclusing customised floor cushions!

Inside Tip – The Kerala shop opposite the market is a tiny one in the byland. Before Vishu and Onam one can get Nedran bananas, chips, tapioca chips, coconut,  tapiocal, koorka and more. Hari Kripa Bakery is my favourite. Introduced to me by my father in the 80s, when bakeries were old fashioned. He still bakes his own biscuits, patties, cup cakes, Christmas Plum cakes. They are delicious and affordable. The team is willing to try so one can give orders for puffs, patties or pastries or cakes. They are wholesellers for eggs especially the desi eggs or the country chicken eggs. Yes, the light brown variety. One can pick up that as well as a whole assortment of breads and buns. Narendra Cloth house has some very interesting fabric including the old fashioned velvet, satin, mattee cloth.