We, at Odisha Eco tourism foundation, always intend to promote and support the local community by empowering them in all ways possible. Our ultimate objective is the upliftment of the locals using eco tourism as a tool which brings broader benefit into the society.
The pandemic has hit the globe like an earthquake with large scale devastation at every corner of life. Every individual has been affected irrespective of his community or profession. The global economy is still suffering from losses which impacts the people from the grass roots the most.
With lockdowns, closed borders, trade restrictions and no public gatherings, the artists have paid huge prices in terms of their survival.
Just like the first ray of dawn after the darkest hour, slowly things are starting to normalize with easier travel and lesser restrictions.
After almost a year, the tourism industry now sees some hope to fight back the losses it has suffered from.
We, at Odisha Eco Tourism Foundation, decided to organize a weekly “Saturday Night Artist’s Bazaar” to join hands and help local artists bounce back. This bazaar aims to provide a platform to talented local artists from grass root levels to showcase their art to people from all over the country and earn some revenue by selling their craft in this well curetted beach bazaar. In order to preserve art, we need to keep promoting and encouraging the artists who pour all their hard work and creativity into it. This bazaar is a platform not only for the artists, but also enables the visitors to be spectators of the outstandingly rich and magnificent artwork of Odisha. Local artists also perform traditional dance and music which glorifies the ambience of the beautiful and serene Niladree beach. Beach vendors such as photographers, tea sellers, local snack sellers and foot masseurs are also a part of the bazaar where they get to extend their services and earn a decent amount.
But this is not all. We aim to further expand the bazaar by setting up an online platform where the local artists can list themselves and share their art with a much larger audience globally.
The Saturday weekly market has been appreciated by all and we plan to make it a regular event where we can promote crafts that are “Handmade in Odisha” and encourage more people to “Buy Local”.
We thank our partners (Puri District Administration and NGO-Prabhav) for their constant support and assistance to make the bazaar sustainable in future.
We look forward to see you in the Bazaar, promoting local art and enjoying a cup of good chai on the beach.
Cyclone Fani hit Odisha in 2019 and wrecked the lives of millions of people in ways which last till date. It devastated thousands of livelihoods and created a havoc for a very large part of the society. Thousands of small businesses were destroyed which led to many family losing all of their income. The cyclone passed leaving nothing except endless destruction behind. But life goes on. So, We tried to lend a helping hand to few such small businesses by providing them financial aid and support to help them revive and restart again. These businesses have now revived and come back to life, and the warm smiles of those local entrepreneurs pumps and motivates us to keep moving forward despite the ups and downs of life. When life gives you challenges, you strike back stronger and braver than before.
We initiated a small boutique at Desia to promote local, natural and handmade products which are grown by the farmers at remote locations in a completely natural environment. The products are of premium quality and are absolutely pure and natural. This acts as a source of revenue for the local artists and farmers who carefully pick out the best honey, millet, turmeric, local coffee, pepper and textiles, with utmost love, affection and hard work for you.
During this lockdown, we intend to make a basket full of carefully hand picked natural items collected by the local farmers and artisans, and sell them to our old customers via social media platforms under the name “Eco-Basket”.
