The Sunday Soul Sante – say it again – Sunday Soul Sante, there is a holistic vibe about it as the name slides off your tongue. The name is an acknowledgment of your day off and keeping it sacred, spending it well with some quality family time and some food for your soul. The Sante is the result of Asha Rao’s foresight. “It is a 15-year-old story. I saw the need for a creative market in Bangalore. There are so many talented young people who were struggling. Before you ‘arrive’ you need someone to hold your hand.”
Asha used to host the sante in Whitefield and when she saw that the market attracted people in droves, her next thought was, “Why not move it to town?” Things scaled upwards very quickly and before Asha could say flea market the Sunday Soul Sante had become a brand and a collective of creativity and style. “You cannot plan a vibe, it just happens,” she says.
And now that Palace Grounds is off limits, Asha briefly considered cancelling the event. She says, “You cannot take an exhibition of this size and spirit into a closed hall. So we have moved it to another place, it’s beautiful, so serene and has been right under my nose forever,” she gushes when she talks about Temple Tree in Sahakarnagar. The new venue does not worry her. “It is going to be as spectacular and if not this one the Christmas bazaar will be,”
Asha is very conscious of quality and makes sure she screens every vendor. “We have been growing in popularity and there are so many vendors who come from outside that at the end of the day it goes beyond buying and selling, it gives young designers the window to build their brand.”
Whether you are a culture vulture or arty or hip or old or hip and old, there is something for everyone to get out in the beautiful Bangalore weather and have the satisfaction of a Sunday well spent. The sante allows free entry for senior citizens and children below the age of 12; it is baby-friendly with changing stations and feeding rooms; they even allow pets.
Visit the Sunday Soul Sante at Temple Tree, Sahakarnagar, Hebbal, Off New Airport Road from 4.30 p.m. to 11.30 p.m. on October 28.
