In a land of cultural and geographical diversities one gets to enjoy and experience wide varieties of cultures, fairs and festivals and India is the epitome of such experiences. A country where after every hundred kilometer you are embraced by a new cultural identity one gets to enjoy diverse backgrounds, beliefs and heritage. These fairs and festivals are part of the intrinsic cultural fabric of our society as well as a continuation of our heritage. It is in this spirit that we bring to you some of the vibrant, fascinating and most beautiful fairs and festivals of India that are organized and enthusiastically celebrated across the country.
Modhera Dance Festival, Gujarat
This dance festival of India, celebrated in the beautiful backdrop of the Modhera Sun Temple is an effort on part of the Tourism Department of Gujarat to bring back to life the ways of our medieval past. Today, this cultural festival held in January every year gets together the finest classical dancing talent of the country to celebrate the art and the place.
Tarnetar Mela, Gujarat
One of the most fascinating tribal fairs of India, Tarnetar Mela is a tribal fair held every year in the village of Tarnetar in Gujarat. This festival is fascinating for the simple reason that it is one of the largest “marriage marts” or swayamvars in India where tribal men come to the fair dressed eloquently carrying the most elaborately and beautifully embroidered umbrellas in the world. The woman folk choose their prospective husband based on the umbrella they find the most beautiful. Besides this is a cultural event with folk music and dance performances for general entertainment.
Konark Dance Festival, Odisha
The India’s biggest dance festival, Konark Dance Festival is the epitome of our Classical dancing heritage which represents itself in the most awe inspiring of settings. The festival is held in the backdrop of the UNESCO World Heritage Site – the Sun Temple. The festival organized in the month of February is one of the biggest cultural festival in the country as it witnesses the coming together of country’s best dance artists to celebrate the storied past of the temple and its traditions.
Jaisalmer Desert Festival, Rajasthan
The desert festival held in the month of February in the Red Sandstone city of Jaisalmer is a fascinating celebration of Rajasthan’s desert life for three days. It is a festival that brings to life the folk culture, the music, the clothes and the traditions of the nomadic life of the Indian desert. One can immerse themselves in three days of pure magic with folktales, music and dance performances. The camel, the most important animal in the desert, is one of the main attractions of the festival.
Goa Carnival, Goa
Well the name Goa is synonymous with fun, beautiful beaches, laid back vacations and amazing beach shacks and continuing that tradition is the awesome Goa Carnival. This carnival of India is celebrated state wide with the help of the state government. It is part of the Portuguese heritage of Goa which sees people come out on the street to enjoy the fascinating parades full of creative floats, to dance and party all night. The carnival travels the whole state. This cultural event is held in the month of March just before the beginning of Lent.
Pushkar Mela, Rajasthan
Arguably the biggest fair in the state of Rajasthan and one of the biggest livestock fairs in the world, Pushkar Mela is a fascinating coming together of the nomadic culture and the most beautiful town of Rajasthan. It is primarily a place where the buying and selling of camels and livestock takes place but in recent times with its increasing popularity among foreign tourists competitions like ‘matka phodh’, ‘bridal games’ and ‘longest moustache’ have become popular events. The Pushkar Mela is the perfect opportunity for travelers to discover the nomadic lifestyle of Rajasthan.
Hornbill Festival, Nagaland
The Hornbill Festival is a unique folk festival celebrated in the North-eastern state of Nagaland. A region with rich tribal heritage and traditions, the Hornbill Festival is an effort on part of the Nagaland tourism department to bring to the world the culture and beauty of Nagaland. The festival celebrated every year from 1st to 7th December, is an amazing exhibition of Naga way of life attracting thousands of tourists to its doors.
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Puri Rath Yatra, Odisha
One of the biggest religious events of the year in the country, the Puri Rath Yatra is a spectacle of the grandest scale. The Rath Yatra sees a coming together of over a million devotees every year near the famed Jagganath Temple of Puri. The yatra sees three huge temple shaped chariots being pulled to the Gundicha Temple and after nine days back to the Jagganath Temple. The yatra is held in the month of June or July and is supposed to be one of the holiest events in Hinduism.
Kumbh Mela
The biggest gathering of human beings on the planet at a particular place every three years, that pretty much sums up Kumbh Mela. The most important and largest religious event in the country, the Kumbh Mela is a festival of mammoth proportion but also full of colors as the Naga Sadhus from various parts of the country travel with their Akhadhas to the site of the Mela. The festival is held in Allahabad, Banaras, Haridwar, and Ujjain. Hindus from all over the world come to take a dip in the holy river and listen to sermons from the various sadhus at the mela site. It is considered to be one of the most spiritually enlightening festivals in the world. The next Kumbh Mela known as the Ardh Kumbh is to be held in the beautiful hill city of Nashik.
Hemis Festival, Ladakh
In the northernmost corner of the country amidst the cold deserts of Ladakh is held a festival of colors, beauty and worship known as the Hemis Festival. The festival which takes place to commemorate the death of Swami Padmasambhava is a great place to understand the culture of Ladakh and about Buddhism. The festival is held every year in June or July in the famed monastery of Hemis Jangchub Choling in Leh. The festival’s highlight is the masked dance performed by lamas who dress themselves in colorful costumes and wear dragon masks.
Jaipur Literature Festival
Asia’s grandest literary event, the Jaipur Literature Festival sees the coming together of the brightest names in the world of literature and thought who converge at the famed Diggi Palace in Jaipur for three days of intellectual bliss and enjoyment. The festival has gained quite a reputation for itself for attracting the best authors who recite, discuss and present their finest work in front of an awed audience. The Jaipur Literature Festival is held in the last week of January and many people use it as an opportunity to discover the Pink City as much as to pleasure their literary senses.
Elephant Festival, Jaipur
A royal festival for a royal animal, Elephant Festival held on the occasion of Holi in Jaipur is a special festival loved by the people of Jaipur. The festival which is dedicated to the Elephants sees them decorated in the most lavish ways from head till toe. The event begins with a procession of beautifully decorated elephants, horses and camels. The event is considered to be very prestigious with the most well decorated elephant getting an award. Besides the procession there are events such as elephant racing, elephant dance and tug-of-war between elephants and humans.
Bikaner Camel Festival
The Bikaner Camel Festival is the celebration of the most loved and dependent upon animal in the deserts of Rajasthan – the Camel. The ship of the desert as they call them, the festival sees camels decorated in beautifully embroidered costumes. It is held every year in the month of January in the presence of a large gathering. The festival begins with a colorful procession of the most beautifully decorated camels at the Junagarh Fort from there the procession moves to the Polo Ground where other events such as camel dance are held.
