Rain-marred Dekho Re to start again from September

Lal Dighi in the central business district that had come up as one of the favourite weekend destinations for the city-dwellers after the cultural extravaganza "Dekho Re" had begun in April.

The weekend programmes along with food stalls and stalls for handicraft goods had to be kept suspended due to monsoon.

But there is nothing to worry as the state government has decided to bring back "Dekho Re" once again from mid-September.

A high-level meeting was held in this regard in the state secretariat Nabanna. Top brass of the Information and Cultural Affairs Department, Tourism Department, Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) department were present in the meeting.

Dekho Re was the brainchild of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and it was inaugurated by Mayor Sovan Chatterjee in April.

Hundreds of people used to visit every Saturday and Sunday to enjoy folk music along with Bengali cuisine.

Many book stalls and makeshift shops to sell handicraft goods were also set up. But it was found that it is too difficult to continue with the weekend programmes at Lal Dighi due to heavy rain. So it was decided to keep it suspended for a few months.

Again, the senior officials have decided to bring it back in September that is just a couple of weeks ahead of Durga Puja.

Folk artistes from different parts of the state who are enrolled under the state governments Lok Prashar Prakalpa used to perform at Lal Dighi every Saturdays and Sundays as a part of Dekho Re.

Despite being situated in an area that is surrounded by offices, both government and private, Dekho Re had gained immense popularity.

On every weekend, Lal Dighi used to get a different look with folk artiste performing on the beats of traditional music.

At the same time, it had provided a good platform to manufacturers of handicraft goods to promote their produce in the Kolkata market. Many even used to visit the place just to buy handicraft goods. The decision to start Dekho Re once again will help such handicraft goods manufacturers ahead of the Puja.