An anatomy of a spectacle called Dasara

MYSORE: The Dasara festivities may have come to an end but the government and the district administration ought to learn from the shortcomings in converting the event into something more significant.Express takes a look at what went wrong in this year’s Dasara and proffers suggestions to overcome them: The S M Krishna government’s success in getting sponsorship for the festival has not been replicated by successive governments; this could be tied down to the failure to release programme brochures in advance to attract international tourists.Also, the Dasara committees announced the events only a week in advance which was too late for foreigners and tourists from other states to make travel arrangements.Instead of limiting to providing commentary on the tableaux and cultural performances, literature on the history of the festival, legacy of the state, explanation of rituals, among other things should be released and made available for tourists.A Mysore-themed market which will sell products unique to the city, such as Mysore silk, Mysore betel leaves, Mysore masala dosa, Mysore Pak, Mysore jasmine, Erranagere brinjal, book stalls, and handicrafts — should be established in order to promote local business.Street festivals exploring art and culture taking tourists across the city will not confine the festival to a mere four major roads.Bad roads and poor connectivity limits tourists from exploring the surrounding regions and limiting the local business community from converting the festival to their advantage.Eleventh hour sprucing of the city is a cosmetic change and when combined with lack of visitor- friendly traffic regulations and inadequate parking facilities, portrays the city in bad light.The Heritage Walk should be held more frequently to motivate people to know about heritage structures; government should pump more funds for restoration of heritage structures People removing chairs from the Mysore Palace, a day after Dasara concluded, on Friday