Chandigarh, October 15, 2017: What if you could buy a piece of rich cultural history of Punjab while shopping for Diwali! CII Chandigarh Fair provides an opportunity for visitors to celebrate their love for the common cultural heritage of both sides of Punjab thanks to a unique stall put up by Punjab Digital Library at the Fair. The rare collectibles are out of the 16 million pages from rare manuscripts, books, newspapers, photographs, magazines etc digitized by Punjab Digital Library.
For the first time these rare items of the history of the region have been display are framed images of old paintings from rare manuscripts from composite history of both sides of Punjab. Mugs with prints of Phulkari , tiles with pictures from old Hindu manuscripts, framed image of ‘mool mantra’ from Sikh scriptures, a rare portrait of Maharaja Ranjit Singh made by E Eden, sister of Governor-General of India George Eden, the front façade of a Moorish Mosque in Kapurthala, image of a woman painting Phulkari pattern on the wall to get a print on cloth, books etc among umpteen insights into the rich culture and heritage of India.
Founder of Punjab Digital Library, Mr Davinder Pal Singh says, “The idea of reaching out to people through the CII Chandigarh Fair is to acquaint them with their cultural heritage. We have introduced these products for the first time at the Fair to let people keep a piece of our history in their homes through these memorabilia. We sourced these rare images first from villages in the region as well as government museums and galleries. People have loved our products as they appeal to their very core.”
“I was surprised and happy to find such beautifully done calligraphy and images from ancient scriptures at CII Chandigarh Fair 2017. Taking a piece of my history and culture with me is to me a true celebration of Diwali. The collection is sourced from both sides of Punjab which makes it even more special as my family came from Pakistan side of Punjab,” says Nirmal, a visitor at the Fair.