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Rajasthan Fairs & Festivals |
Rajasthan
Fairs & Festivals Calendar |
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Fairs and Festivals of Rajasthan reflects the vigour and life
style of its people. Vibrant colours, music and festivities make
the golden sands come alive. Veiled, bejeweled women sing and
dance to devotional rhythms. Itinerant bards render ballads of
valour of the heroes of yore. Alongside, brisk trading of
consumer goods, cattle and grain is carried on. Nomadic tribes
and traditional entertainers- minstrels, jugglers, puppeteers
and performers come together at these fairs seeking livelihood.
Rajasthan has a fair for every religious occasion, for every
change of season and for every harvest. In fact, anytime of the
year is festival time in Rajasthan. The festivities
are marked by folk dances and music played on a variety of
locally made instruments. All the fairs & festivals are widely
attended by people from all over the world & all walks of life.
Celebrations in Rajasthan range from the religious to the
popular, linked with commerce, as in the case of the camel and
cattle fairs. In more recent times. the tourism industry too has
initiated a number of tourist fairs in an attempt to showcase
the life, culture, traditions & performing arts of Rajasthan.
There is no region in Rajasthan without its cattle fairs. Nagaur, Merta, Tilwara,
Parbatsar. Jhalarpatan, Gogamedi and Pushkar are full of colour
and gaiety. These are held each year on certain fixed dates of
the lunar calendar, which have specific religious significance.
These activities sat the fair are diverse: livestock is sold,
village produce and handicrafts find a ready market and even
matches are arranged for eligible boys and girls by the kinfolk
gathered together. With nightfall, comes singing & dancing and a
variety of entertainment. |
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Important Fairs
& Festivals of Rajasthan |
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Mewar Festival, Udaipur |
Gangaur Festival, Jaipur |
Marwar Festival, Jodhpur |
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Beneshwar Fair, Dungarpur |
Elephant Festival, Jaipur |
Nagaur Fair, Nagaur |
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Camel Festival, Bikaner |
Teej Festival, Jaipur |
Winter /
Summer Festival, Mt Abu |
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Desert Festival, Jaisalmer |
Shitala Ashtami Festival, Jaipur |
Pushkar Fair, Pushkar |
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Dussehra Festival, Kota |
Kolayat Fair, Bikaner |
Chandrabhaga Fair, Jhalawar |
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Camel
Festival, Bikaner :- Held in Bikaner in January,
this celebration is a recent introduction in the desert
city with only Camel Breeding farm in the country. Not
unexpectedly, most of the events are staged around
Camel, with Camel dances & races. There are also several
folk performance, and this may also be your chance to
experience the rare fire dance staged at late night. |
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Nagaur
Fair, Nagaur :- Nagaur awakens to bustling life
every year with the thronging of cattle, horses and
camels accompanied by their turbaned owners and eager
buyers. This cattle fairs held annually is supposed to
be one of the largest in the country. The Nagaur bulls
are renowned for their fleet-footedness and therefore,
attract buyers from all over. The day starts with buyers
and sellers engaged in earnest bargains. Once the price
of horse, bullock or probably a camel has been settled,
the day draws to a close with fun and festivity. Games,
tug of war, camel races and strains of ballads create a
joyful atmosphere with the setting sun in
background.
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Desert
Festival, Jaisalmer :- For three days Jaisalmer
gets a chance to parade its charms to the world. Some
chosen and cherished moments of its glorious past and
rich culture are on display. The traditional dances
accompanied by high pitched music on instruments take
the folk dancers one step back into time. The famous
Gair dancers and the fires-dancers steal the show
whenever they perform. There is further excitement afoot
with the "Turban Tying Competitions" and Mr. Desert
contest. The grand finale is a trip to the sand dunes at
Sam where on can enjoy. and have the pleasure of the a
camel ride and at times also view the musicians and
dancers performing on the dunes.
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Beneshwar Fair,
Beneshwar :- Held in the Dungarpur district of
Rajasthan, the fairs derives is name from the reserved
Shiva Linga of that area. Predominantly a tribal affair
with more than half the congregation being Bhils
thousands gather near the confluence of the Mahi and Som
rivers to worship, sing and dance. A silver image of
Mavji, a reincarnation of Kalki, an avatar of Lord
Vishnu is brought on horse back. Magic Shows, acrobatic
displays and merry-go-rounds add fun and frolic to the
religious celebrations. |
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Elephant
Festival, Jaipur :- On the occasion of "Holi" ~ the
festival of colours in Jaipur, this festival of
pachyderms includes several interesting attractions
including elephant polo. The caparisoned elephants,
their bodies painted with floral decorations by the
Mahout, are a sight to behold. |
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Shitala Ashtami,
Jaipur :- This is a folk festival (March/April) held
al Chaksu near Jaipur. Shitala Devi is the the
controlling deity of smallpox. Food Prepared on the
previous evening is eaten and the prayers offered to
assuage the wrath of the fierce goddess. Village
festivities herald the occasion.
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Gangaur
Festival, Jaipur :- Idols of Issar and Gangaur,
manifestations of of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati, are
worshiped by women and particularly those unmarried who
pray for a consort of the like of Shiva. The procession
with Horses, Camels, Elephants & woman carrying images
of the divine couple starts from City Palace and passes
through the streets of Pink City. It is one of the best
festival of the state.
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Mewar
Festival, Udaipur :- This festival welcomes spring,
offering the overview of Rajasthani Culture through
songs, dances, processions, devotional music and
fireworks displays. The evening are made colourful with
Gangaur processions. The grand climax is seen when
groups of women dressed in rainbow hues of scarlet,
yellow, green and purple carry images to the Gangaur
Ghat of Lake Picchola, and a stately boat procession
starts on from the Lake Palace. Also held on the
occasion of Gangaur in the City of Lakes- Udaipur, the
whole city turns out to mark the culmination of the 18
day festival, with a procession of floats on Lake
Picchola.
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Winter / Summer
Festival, Mount Abu :- Mount Abu, the venue for the summer
festivals / Winter Festivals, is covered with mango groves, beautiful
bauhinia trees and thickets of wild berries. Rocks and
lakes and the picturesque locations of the Abu, stir
with life during the festival. In the pleasant climate,
the three day carnival is a feast of folk and classical
music and a window to tribal festivities. The tourists
have time enjoying and relaxing. |
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Teej
Festival, Jaipur :- This festival of swings marks
the advent of the monsoon month of Shravan(August). The
monsoons bring the water to the parched land and the
scent of wet earth rises intoxicatingly in the air.
Swings are hung from trees and decorated with flowers.
Young girls sing songs of love and rain. This festival
is dedicated to goddess Parvati, commemorating the day
when she was united with the Lord Shiva.
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Dussehra
Festival, Kota :- Ten days of battle between Lord
Rama and King Ravana, are celebrated throughout India,
with theatrical enactments of the dramatic encounter. On
the vanquished Ravana and his brother Kumbhkarna and
Meghnad, made of paper and bamboo and stuffed with
fire-crackers, are set alight. The worship of weapons
during this festival was essential for the martial
Rajput race. In some places a goat is sacrificed in
order to propitiate Kali, the goddess of destruction and
war.
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Marwar
Festival, Jodhpur :- A festival devoted to mainly to
music and dance of the Marwar region. It was originally
known as the "Maand festival", a classical style of folk
music centered on the romantic lifestyle of the
Rajasthan's ruler. Held for two days on full moon-Sharad
Purnima, the folk artists bring tom life the myth,
legend and folklore of the area. Jodhpur, the capital of
former Princely state of Marwar, this annual event
attempts to showcase the art & culture of the region.
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Pushkar
Fair, Pushkar :- Easily the most identifiable of
Rajasthan's many fairs, Pushkar has come to symbolize
the febrile heartbeat of the people of the state. Held
in November in Pushkar, the temple town close to Ajmer,
where
in 8th century temple of Lord Brahma draws the
faithful, it is located on the banks of a lake. Pilgrims
bathe at the "Ghats" and pray at the temple, while the
actual fair is held in the vast stretching desert around
it. Here, traders set camp to
strike deals at India's and probably the words largest
camel fair, though horses are sold. It is also a time
for friends and families to get together, camp in desert
entertain each other with folksongs and dances, cook
meals over camp fires, and wander through the exuberant
melee of people looking for handicrafts, or merely to
stand in a queue for giant Marry go round wheel...
"Special Tented Camps" are set up on the occasion for
visitors but such is the draw of this fair
internationally.
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Chandrabhaga Fair,
Jhalawar :- In the month of Kartik (Oct-Nov) the
banks of Chandrabhaga river are transformed into
colourful and dazzling cattle fairground. the fair held
on the last day of Kartik, attracts thousands of
devotees who bath in the holy waters of Chandrawati. On
this occasion cattle from distant parts are brought for
sale. Even traders from various parts of Madhya Pradesh
and Maharashtra come here in large numbers. |
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Kolayat Fair, Bikaner
:- The Kolayat lake is bordered by about fifty ghats.
Devotees believe that they will achieve purification by
bathing in the waters at the time of the full moon, in
the month of Kartik (Oct-Nov). In addition to the
worship of the saint Kapil Muni, a great cattle fair
also takes place where hundreds of cattle are bought and
sold. |
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