As I was embarking upon my journey to Rajasthan, the Land of Maharajas, I was overwhelmed with the majestic and exquisite palaces, havelis, houses painted in different colours, the nomadic landscapes and the overall magnanimity of the land and its people.
I was set for a very exciting journey to Pushkar, a town bordering the Thar Desert, in the north western Indian state of Rajasthan.
Pushkar Lake
It’s set on Pushkar Lake, a sacred Hindu site with 52 ghats (stone staircases) where pilgrims bathe. The town has hundreds of temples, including 14th-century Jagatpita Brahma Mandir, dedicated to the god of creation, which has a distinctive red spire and walls inlaid with pilgrims’ silver coins.
The city is famous for its Camel fair, its one of the most magnanimous festivals of Rajasthan, when the whole sacred town of Pushkar comes alive, with villagers right from women, children dressed in their finest attires enjoy the festivity and participate in some trade by selling jewellery, vessels and a lot of other ethnic stuff.
This year the festival was from November 8 to 14. During this week long event, I got the opportunity to enjoy the festivity, as a range of activities were planned for this occasion right from Camel decoration contests to Camel dance contests. Kite flying demonstration which was in itself a brilliant way to understand this beautiful activity of this land. The festival also witnesses every year thousands of foreigners who come all the way from their respective countries to witness this breathtaking week long procession of activities showcasing the Indian culture in its truest form.
Cricket Match
To add to the flavour of the festival, I witnessed an absolutely fun-filled cricket match played between the villagers and a team of eleven foreign players.
Moustache Contest
Then we had the moustache contest, where villagers and foreigners displayed proudly their long moustaches and how much pride they took in it. his was one of the most fascinating activities of the entire festival.
Next was the Turban tying contest in which the foreigner wives had to tie the Indian turbans to their husbands.
All this was a lot of fun, with the stadium flocked by around 5000 foreigners and villagers who alike were enjoying this great fun filled 7 day event.
There were a lot more activities including musical chair, cultural events, balloon rides, temple artist and some soulful live Music concerts that were slated every evening with music artists coming over from different parts of the country.
All in all, it was great two days for me, full of activities, fun, rajasthani cuisine and hospitality, colourful and modest people I can’t wait to be at the next Pushkar fair starting October 28’ 2017.
