Local startups build new connections at Rongali 2022, seize lucrative business opportunities

Rongali, the biggest cultural and colourful extravaganza of Assam, is organizing a ‘Vocal for Local’ exhibition to provide a platform for around 200 home-grown entrepreneurs to showcase their products.

New Delhi:Rongali, the biggest cultural and colourful extravaganza of Assam, is organizing a ‘Vocal for Local’ exhibition to provide a platform to around 200 home-grown entrepreneurs comprising self-help groups, agri-entrepreneurs, weavers, artisans, government agencies and industrial organisations showcasing their products. The three-day festival commenced on April 8.

Shyamkanu Mohanta, Chief Organiser, Rongali said, “Rongali is all about celebrating Assamese culture and giving a platform to the highly-skilled local entrepreneurs, who are producing some incredible products. It is great to witness that they have been bagging good responses from the visitors and are making profitable business deals. We want to create an ecosystem for entrepreneurship in our state."

For many Assam-based unicorns and startups, which started during the COVID pandemic, participating in the sixth edition of Rongali is their debut in the real business world after operating virtually for more than two years. The budding entrepreneurs are elated with the kind of response they are getting from the audience and the connections they are building in the three-day festival.

Putolo.com, a Guwahati-based startup, started its business venture in 2020 when the unprecedented COVID crisis hit the world. It is primarily a harmful chemical-free soap company and also deals with organic plants and potteries. They have been operating digitally through their website and for the first time, they have set up their stall at the festival and registered a Rs 10,000 sale within the first day. The handmade soap variants like Tulsi, Charcoal, Neem, Lemon and Coconut shell charcoal have already become a hit among the visitors.

“We are grateful to the organisers of Rongali for giving us the much-needed platform. This is the first time we are selling our products offline. Participating in the festival not only gave a push to our offline sales but also online. All these soaps are handmade and we have been using natural ingredients which are free from paraben, chloride, Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLS), sodium lauryl ether sulfate (SLES), animal fat and other synthetic ingredients. We are quite happy with the kind of response we have been getting from our stall visitors. We have been getting many orders,” said Archana Borthakur, Founder, of Putola.com.

IWA Silk Farmer Producer Co. Ltd, a Palashbari-based association, has launched an era thread and some variants of natural dye thread under the brand Palash. A kilo of thread costs Rs 2200 and is in demand. On day 2 of the festival, they have already sold 5 kilograms of thread besides their sarees and Mekhela Chador.

Bahuboli egg, which emerged as a popular egg brand in Jorhat and Guwahati during the COVID pandemic with their seamless home delivery of eggs, registered a sale of Rs 3000 during the inaugural day of the festival. In 2018, the company started an egg-production unit in Jorhat and at present around 45,000 eggs are being produced every day and they’ve hit the market of Jorhat and other districts of Assam.

“We have been getting decent responses from the people. Even people outside Assam have been showing interest in our eggs. We sold 30 crates of eggs yesterday and it was a good deal for us. We are expecting more sales during the weekend. The speciality of our eggs is that they are comparatively larger in size and high in protein,” said Mr Mintu Bora, Supplier, Bahuboli Egg.

Mr Bitupan Dihingia, Secretary, PIAARA, Sivsagar Industry Association, said the festival has given them opportunities to build new business deals from other states of the North East. They have already bagged many such deals on day 1 of the festival. “This is quite a good platform to showcase our products. We deal in rice of Assam such as Red Rice, Black Rice and Joshua Rice. We also have organic green tea which is freshly plucked from our tea gardens and have many variants of pickles,” he added.

Even the food stalls, serving the authentic food of Assam, are getting good feedback from the visitors and many stalls are running out of food items much before their expected time. The organisers of the festival are elated to see their vision of the festival is getting fulfilled as entrepreneurs are getting market for their products.