Thursday, January 3, 2013

Nagaur Fair

Ramdeoji Cattle fair
Nagaur Cattle fair

Nagaur Fair -The Jodhpur Nagaur fair or Ramdeoji Cattle fair is infact a cattle fair, the second largest in Rajasthan . Nagaur fair is founded by the great Jodhpur Dynasty king Mr. Umed Singh in honour of Sh. Ramdeoji 56 years back and since then it has been held regularly.  The fair goes on for eight days. Nagaur Fair of Jodhpur, Rajasthan is held every year during the month of Jan-Feb.
It is popularly known as the Cattle fair of Nagaur. This is because the Nagaur Fair is mainly all about trading of animals.

The Nagaur Fair is held in charming Rajput town- Nagaur, located between Jodhpur and Bikaner.

The Nagaur Fair is held in the month of January-February every year and continues for four days starting on Magh Shukla Saptmi. Every year about 70,000 bullocks, camels and horses are bought and sold in this fair.

The Nagaur Fair is an attraction for tourists. It magnetise visitors from all over the world, who come to see the trading of camels, cattle and horses by their owners dressed in colourful and beautiful attire.

The picturesque sight of people dressed in beautiful dresses and participating locals and tourists in sports is worth capturing with camera.

Nagaur district is the land of fairs. They are not only a hub to sale and buy cattles but also show the true spirit of living life. The rural people take on these fairs as big social events; thus participate in these fairs very eagerly with great enthusiasm.

In addition to the cattle things that are of routine use even from needles to nails are available in these events. Fairs witness strong social harmony and are seen as the true expression of rustic rural Rajasthan.

Shopping:
Animals that come for being sold in this fair are magnificently garlanded and decorated with loads of accessories to provide a vibrant look to them by their owners. The owners in colourful turban and long moustaches keeps themselves busy in selling cows, bullocks, oxen, horses and camels and are seen conversing and bargaining with the buyers.

The Nagauri bull is the most attractive buy besides camels, horses, bullocks, buffalos, goat & sheep. Traders from all over the country gather here and participate actively to vie with each other in purchasing high pedigree animals.

The fair provides an opportunity to see real Rajasthan, rural folk in colourful traditional dresses & turbans in a rural ambience.

In addition to exhibition of animals and their trading, the fair is also popular for its Mirchi Bazaar, which is biggest in India. The Mirchi bazaar in Nagaur fair is a place to market red chilly.Wooden items, iron-crafts and camel leather accessories and many other things are also sold here.

Celebrations:
Amid of business activities, the visitors indulge themselves into exciting sports to enjoy riveting activities at the fair. The major sports held at the fair include tug-of-war, camel races, bullock races and cockfights. The jugglers; puppeteers, storytellers and campfire evenings make it a life time experience. The silence of desert is broken by the musical notes of the folk music of region. The scene of sun sinking below the horizon and the sand dunes glittering in the twilight is worth watching.

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Pushkar Fair


Also known as Pushkar ka Mela, Pushkar Cattle Fair, is the world's largest camel fair held in the holy town of Pushkar in Rajasthan. Competitions such as the "Matka Phod", "moustache", and "bridal competition" are the main attractions of the Pushkar camel fair which attracts thousands of tourists. A spotlight of one's holiday in India, the festival hosts around 50,000 camels which are sold, decorated, shaved and raced. From a mere 14,000 to a massive 200,000! This is how the population of Pushkar swells during the Pushkar camel festival. 

History & Legends:
Puskar has has the only temple of Lord Brahma in the country. Myth says that Lord Brahma was on his way to search for a suitable place to perform a 'Yagna' (a fire sacrifice) while contemplating, a lotus fell from his hand on the earth and water sprouted from that place. One of them was Pushkar where Lord Brahma performed "Yagna". Worship of Brahma was considered highly important at the end of the first millennium BC. The holy lake has 52 ghats and pilgrim taking a ritual dip in the lake is a common sight. Although a serene town, Pushkar bustles with life during the joyous celebration held on Kartik Purnima. Every year thousands of devotees throng the Pushkar lake around the full moon day of Kartik Purnima in October-November to take a holy dip in the lake. Huge and colourful cattle fair "The Pushkar Fair", is also held during this time. Pushkar cattle fair is well-known for it's camel trading and other attractive activities. 

Cultural Significance:
Umpteen number of traders gather here and and set up shops. These traders sell a lot of products like woolen blankets of Merta, bead necklaces of Nagaur, textiles printed in Ajmer and Jodhpur, brassware of Jodhpur and Jaipur etc. Saddles, ropes, and assorted household items are also on sale. Cultural shows and exhibitions are also organized in this fair to enliven the event. Movies are shown, competitions are arranged, bards and poets recite and sing tales of valour and heroism of bygone days. Animal races and other competitions also add the attraction. 

Why visit the Pushkar Fair?
It is the world's largest Camel Fair.
You’ll visit the only Brahma Temple in the world.
You’ll see the Holy Pushkar Lake with 52 ghats surrounding it.
Pushkar offers around 400 temples to see.
You can participate in numerous cultural activities
Ethnic shopping items from all over the state are on sale.
It’s a rare combination of religious fervour and cultural vibrancy in Rajasthan.
You can interact with tribal folks and understand their culture.