ART AND FOOD FESTIVAL AT GLOBAL VILLAGE

ART AND FOOD FESTIVAL

 AT GLOBAL VILLAGE

The 24-acre Lulu Convention Centre premises near the Bolghatty Palace Hotel here will host Global Village from December 22 to January 9, in connection with the Grand Kerala Shopping Festival. Art forms and food from Pakistan, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Japan, China, etc., will vie for the attention of visitors at the village. Alongside will be a typical Kerala village, where the State’s art forms and ethnic food will be on show.Food items from other States too will be put up for sale. The aim is to revive Kerala’s traditions, said Tourism Minister A.P. Anil Kumar here on Thursday.Fortnight eventThe fortnight-long event comes during the festive season, when Kochi is playing host to India’s first biennale and is set to host the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas celebrations from January 7 to 9. The village located within the air-conditioned dome will be inaugurated by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Saturday evening.

The village will have nearly 400 stalls across separate themed pavilions, each offering a unique shopping experience, the organisers said.The food pavilion will feature around 50 stalls, including ‘thattukadas’ that serve everything from tapioca and fish curry to ‘ghevar’ from Rajasthan, Mexican salads and Italian pizzas.Malabar cuisine will make its presence in the form of dum biriyani, kallummekkaya curry, erachi puttu and pathiri and Kuttanadan style vazhappo vada, konju pollichathu, fish molee and karimeen curry.

One of the biggest attractions at the food festival will be authentic tribal food from Wayanad. The unique cuisine of the Kurumar tribe of Wayanad will include gandhakasala ghee rice, mulamkutty puttu, kaattu curry, ragi pakkavada, kattu soup, ooru puzhukku, kattukaapi and karakondappam.Regional flavours from other parts of the country include dishes from Punjab, Kashmir, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Delhi and Bengal. Dosa, the south Indian favourite, will have a stall for itself. There will be a variety of dosa stuffings and toppings including crab, prawn, mutton, chicken, fish, egg, onion, masala, tomato, chilli, mushroom and cauliflower.Street Food, the soul of India culture, too will be celebrated with delicacies such as chaats, pani puris, bhel puris, thattu dosa and puttu.

Seaplane service

To a question on when seaplane services will begin plying in the State, Mr. Anil Kumar said that a few firms had evinced interest in the service. The paper works for this were being sped up.Pre-paid auto and taxi counter will function from the global village premises.

Prof. John Kurakar