Dubai: Starry-eyed fans clicking selfies with life-size cutouts of Bollywood stars are a common sight at the India pavilion in Global Village.
For many residents, it is the closest they can get to brushing shoulders with their favourite celebrities.
Even non-Indian fans, mainly citizens of Gulf countries who follow Indian movies, are hopping on to the Bollywood Express, a model train dotted with celebrity cutouts, at the pavilion.
Life in Mumbai, the heart of the Bollywood film industry, is often characterised by the railway network that ferries millions of commuters a day.
Bollywood Express are thrilled to pose with models of A-listers such as Amitabh Bachchan, Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif and Kareena Kapoor among others.
“This is so good, it’s always fun to pose next to a still,” said Ankit Mehta, 23, an Indian tourist. “I think the India pavilion is doing a good job at showcasing the culture and products of India.”
Entry to the ‘train’ is free, but visitors have the option to have their picture framed for Dh30-Dh60 (depending on the frame size) or printed on a T-shirt for Dh60-Dh75.
Directional signs in the pavilion alleys guide visitors to the Bollywood Express.
Elaborately decorated kiosks selling traditional handicrafts from India’s Rajasthan state are also a big draw at the pavilion. Kathputli artistes, perhaps India’s most famous form of stringed puppetry theatre, command attention.
Kathputli loosely translates as wooden puppet.
Gulf News caught up puppeteer Bitto Batt, who comes from a long line of kathputli performers in India. He sometimes demonstrates the art of storytelling through kathputli songs and theatre to visitors.
Batt’s mother sings about Chandu Bai, a girl with never-ending demands for clothes and shopping at fairs, while Batt improvises with a Chandu Bai kathputli.
“This one is not for sale, it has a sentimental value for us. It is because of our art we have been invited to Global Village and other fairs in Europe. We are simple people, we can’t read or write. But we are good storytellers — artists — and Chandu Bai is one representation of our art,” Batt said.
However, there are smaller kathputlis — all handmade — selling for about Dh30 a piece.
Another specialty at the pavilion is Kashmiri pashmina shawls. They are renowned for being extremely soft and light yet able to keep out the cold. Intricate hand embroidery and colourful designs keep them in demand. Pashmina is very fine cashmere wool taken from pashmina goats indigenous to the Himalayas, the world’s highest chain of mountains.
Most pashmina shawls at the pavilion cost around Dh800-Dh1,000, but there are a few that cost tens of thousands of dirhams.
A salesman at the Heritage Kashmir stall displayed a Dh50,000 shawl made from the hair around an antelope’s neck.
“It took about two years to make by hand and features the Mughal design. You can’t get anything so light, yet so warm. This is only found in Kashmir. If you wrap it around, you can barely sense it’s there, but you’ll feel warm in a minute,” the salesman said. “It will last you 10-20 years, no matter how you keep it. It’s meant to last, that’s also the beauty of it.”
The annual Global Village attraction, an outdoor fair of country pavilions, rides, shows and dining, this year lasts till April 11. It is located at Exit 37 on Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Road and Emirates Road.
