Dandiya enthusiasts have a reason to cheer this Navratri - the longest dance festival in the world. For, if it is the H1N1 virus scare on the dandiya venue that makes you cringe at the thought of dancing the nine nights away in a crowd, there is respite in the form of an innovative attire, complete with the mask, to will help you ward off the swine flu fear.
Rajkot-based traditional dress wholesale merchant Hitesh Sonpal has designed a unique dress Navaratri, which offers protection against swine flu. "Generally, we design dresses for Navratri based on the lastest films and other interesting themes. This year, however, swine flu has taken over Bollywood designs. As people are quite aware about the H1N1 virus, we are confident that this dress will be a hit during the upcoming Navratri festival," Sonpal said.
And like the traditional Navratri wear, Sonpal has made efforts to design the 'swine flu dresses' in attractive ways.
"In Gujarat, the traditional dress of Navratri in the form of dhoti, kurta and chorani for boys and chaniya choli for girls is available in various designs. In order to make swine flu dress attractive, there are specially designed glows, masks and caps decorated with pieces of glass. These dresses are not medicated and offer protection by covering the most susceptible areas like the mouth and nose. We have designed 1500 such dresses ready to be supplied.
With the specially designed dress, which ranges between Rs 500 and Rs 800, Sonpal expects to cash in on the mad rush that Navratri brings with it in Gujarat every year. "The market for traditional clothes is huge during Navratri. Every year, we supply 300 to 500 packages per day during the nine nights. Each package is priced between Rs.1000 to 4000."
Sonpal's store H Janak in Rajkot has been providing traditional clothes since the last 15 years.
Gujarat has the highest swine flu death rate in the country, according to data on Union ministry of health and family welfare's website. One in every 10 H1N1 positive patient dies in Gujarat. The state’s death rate is reportedly 10.94% as against the national average of just 2.66 per cent.