Karnataka - Mysore   

Native flowers spread their scent to France

Petal power: The floriculture industry that thrives in the Devaraja market in Mysore will unfold to viewers in France through a documentary

MYSORE: A slice of Mysore will unfold to viewers in France as a French television channel is producing a documentary on the gardens of Mysore and Bangalore.

The television crew spent considerable time in Bangalore taking shots of Lalbagh and Cubbon Park.

In Mysore, the focus was also on floriculture and the crew went round the Mysore Palace premises and filmed the landscaped gardens surrounding the fort. They also visited the flower stalls at the Devaraja market.

The concept of the documentary is to explain the significance of flowers in Indian culture.

The crew visited the flower market in the early hours of the day to record the transactions that take place between retail vendors and wholesale dealers.

What came as a surprise to the crew and could be to future viewers also is that flower trading is an inherited business, handed down from forefathers to their progeny. The majority of the flower sellers have been in the business for generations.

The Tourism Department in Mysore, which coordinated with the visiting team, provided the required background and explained that the unorganised trading of flowers is a multi-crore industry in India as flowers are not only used during auspicious occasions but also in temples for worship, during felicitations and as floral tributes to the dead.

The documentary team moved from the Devaraja market to the horticultural farms on the outskirts of Mysore. They were amazed at the vibrant colours of the marigold that was in full bloom. As the officials here explained, for a country increasingly being associated with its IT power, it was a pleasant surprise for a momentary shift of focus to flower power.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Native flowers spread their scent to France
Mysore-Ajmer express derails, 11 injured
Online Kannada Course receives the most clicks
Taxi drivers to double as guides
Students taught to tap the Web
17,977 traffic cases booked
Western Ghats Task Force opposes Gundia project
States join hands to check illegal transportation of cattle

Copyright © 2009, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu