The Orange City Craft Mela and Folk Dance Festival will be held under the aegis of the South Central Zone Cultural Centre (SCZCC) at its premises in Civil Iines from February 9 to 18.
The annual festival will remain open for the public from 2 pm, to 9.30 pm from February 9. Handicraft items from various parts of the country will be on display at the exhibition. At 6 pm folk and tribal dances will be presented.
SCZCC Assistant Director Deepak Kulkarni informed the media that about 150 handicraft artists will participate in the exhibition-cum-sale. More than 200 artists will present folk dances.
The festival will be inaugurated by the Divisional Commissioner Vijaylaxmi Bidari at 6 pm on February 9. District Collector Dr Vipin Itankar and Commissioner of Police Dr Ravindra Kumar Singhal have been invited for the inaugural programme.
Different food stalls from all over the country will also be installed for food lovers.
The folk dances to be presented include Sirmori from Himachal Pradesh, Samai from Goa, Jizia from Bihar, Tiger Dance from Tamilnadu, Snow Lion/Yalk dance from Sikkim, Raid Dance from Bundelkhand, Ram Bhajan and Pandwani from Chhattisgarh etc.
A Fashion Show for Persons with Disability and Mile Sur Mera Tumhara by RTMNU Students will be presented on February 13. Transgender artists will present a programme on the last day of the exhibition.