The Lalbagh Flower Show Celebrates Nature in all its Splendour
The event of the summer in Bangalore is the flower show at Lalbagh. This year marks the 210th anniversary of the show and it runs from 18th to the 27th of January.
It a celebration of nature’s bounty, from elaborate flower arrangements to stalls that sell all sorts of organic produce. The show has come to be an important part of the state’s Republic day celebrations and is hosted by the Department of Horticulture. This year, being the 150th birth anniversary of the Father of our Nation, the show is dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi, with exhibits ranging from a giant model of his iconic spectacles to a replica of the Sabarmati Ashram.
The show is a great opportunity for various local and nationwide businesses to set up shop and bolster sales. Visitors can choose from a variety of stalls that sell handicrafts, organic fruits and vegetables to gardening essentials. The process behind setting up a stall is apparently hassle free and easily accessible to business owners.
“We have to pay 23,000 Rupees, starting with a deposit of 5,000, and submit the forms and documents in the Lalbagh office,” said Murugendra, manager of the Sri Krishna Farms stall, pointing towards the out-of-sight office. He grinned and reiterated: “It is easy only.”
When asked about profit he swiftly replied in a smattering of Kannada that, “Profit is there but that’s not what matters to us. We want to make the public happy.” It is his 8th year at the show, and he wants to continue to sell their speciality succulents and Teri farms at the show, for many more years to come.
“Lalbagh is something different as our Founder & (former) Chairman Late Dr. Manmohan Attavar started his journey of a seed from Lalbagh and is very closely associated with this Institution,” said Triveni Maiya, spokesperson of Indo-American Hybrid Seeds.
Raju, a Channapatna toys proprietor, is also a regular at the show, and his take away from his many years at the show is that, “Some years there is less profit, some years it’s more. But there is no loss.”
The Channapatna toys are the states pride, but due to rampant copying of their designs and a reluctant set of customers, the business isn’t always flourishing in Bangalore. But the flower show remains a great place to garner some interest in the products, according to Raju.
The show is also host to businesses from other states. Akhilesh is one such stall owner, his piece de resistance being chikky, a caramelised nut snack. The Lonavala Chikky business has branches all over India, and his family runs the Hyderabad branch. He was last here in 2014, with his father. He says that the demand for permits is high, and he was unable to score one in the last four years.
The show is also famous for the flower arrangements that it places in the glass house as its main exhibit. This year, as the theme was Mahatma Gandhi, there were millet sculptures of Gandhi and his grandchild as well as bronze sculptures of a march led by Gandhi. The sculptures and flower pieces have been made by artists from Chitra Kala Parishad as well as labourers that toiled for 45 days to get it all done by the opening day.
The government has reportedly set aside 2 crores for the entirety of the show, and 25 lakhs for all of the art pieces in the glass house. Amidst the resplendent flowers are crowds of people taking pictures of both themselves and the beauty around them
Among them is Pushpa, a 68-year-old nun from Andhra Pradesh. Whilst recording an actor posing as Mahatma Gandhi in front of the life size replica of the Sabarmati ashram made entirely out of chrysanthemums, she reveals that she hasn’t been to Lalbagh in close to 30–40 years.
“I was in Bangalore for my studies as a nun, so I don’t remember much. But when I came here for some work, someone told me that the flower show is happening, so I decided to come here during the lunch break,” she said.
The show is also attended by a lot of young people. Aarti who came with her college friends said the show was relaxing.
“You can forget all about college assignments after a few hours here.”
The show has become an integral part of the city’s fabric, drawing tourists and regulars alike, and is a little slice of nature and peace in the hustle and bustle of Bangalore.
