Colors of Fests on Rajasthani Land
Rajasthan is one tourism hub of India for both international and domestic crowds. The place is recognized for its historical sites, forts, cultural heritage, art, etc. Rajasthan welcomes the tourists with their slogan “Jaane Kya Dikh Jaye”, which means you can’t predict what you can experience in Rajasthan.
Especially you will find international tourists much more attracted towards Rajasthan and the state is a part of the Golden Triangle circuit of tourism. The place is known for its forts, Royalty, Pink City, food, and the various fests organized on the Royal Land of Rajasthan that brings a vast number of tourists from all around the world to gather at a place.
The whole year is covered with one or the other festival or fair that you can experience while visiting but many visit the place just because of the festivals and fairs they want to attend.
So these are some of the festivals and fairs organized around the year that you can experience on the Royal Land.
International Kite Festival
Kite flying is one of the best fun activities that you can experience in India and this competition starts when we are kids, and we want to win the gully kite competition, but this International Kite Festival raises the bar to a new level. This annual event is organized at Makar Sankranti in the Pink City Jaipur.
The city shines with more vibrant colors, the sky full of vibrant colours and unique kites that even give a spectacular view to the viewers. This is not something which we can see every day. The festival is celebrated with enthusiasm, excitement and it brings different kite enthusiasts from different parts of India and other countries.
Not only in the daytime, but if you are visiting the place at the International Kite Festival, you should not miss the lanterns at night. The view is something you can keep on looking at.
You can enjoy the International Kite Festival with the delicious sweet dish called Til Ke Laddu, Gajak & Feeny. India is a place of different tastes that will satisfy your taste bud in every manner.
The time when the whole city has emerged in the excitement of the festival on their roofs or the grounds to compete in the battle of kites.
Teej
Teej is one of the critical and cultural festivals of Hindus celebrated by the women with songs, prayers, dancing. The Teej festival is mainly dedicated to Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati and their union with each other.
In this festival, they often do fasting and it is celebrated in other parts of India like Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, and many more.
While coming into Rajasthan, it is celebrated in a very grand and royal manner. The decorated camels, elephants, and horses are used in the rituals, and they worship Goddess Teej with their traditional songs. It is a significant festival in Rajasthan, and the festival becomes more interesting with the sweets like Ghewar and Malpua.
Jaipur Literature Festival
The Jaipur Literature Festival is the world’s largest free literary festival started in the year 2006. Now it has become more like a ritual to organize this festival every year. The festival is organized in January every year. As literature keeps everyone connected, it is one such example.
People from all over the globe come to experience the Jaipur Literature Festival. The festival is an initiative of JVF (Jaipur Virasat Foundation). The whole festival is free of cost and thus does not have any tickets.
In 2006, the festival started with the 18 writers that included some of the greats like Shobhaa De, William Dalrymple, Hari Kunzru, and others which 100 visitors attended and later in the next few years it expanded. It became the world’s largest free literary festival.
Many well-known speakers and authors have been a part of this literary festival and the enthusiasts have joined this fest from different parts of India and the globe. In 2021, the festival was organized in virtual mode, and more than two hundred speakers participated.
For the year 2022, the festival is scheduled from January 28 to February 1, and it will host more than 250 speakers, icons for the first time the festival will not be free of cost.
Elephant Fair
Rajasthan is known for its Royalty and as a place where the royals lived. Even at that time, the royals used elephants, camels & horses for transportation, and now you can experience those royal animals decorated at their best in the Elephant Fair organized in the Pink City Jaipur.
The fair begins with folk dances, beautifully decorated camels, elephants, and horses. All the owners of the animals embellish their animals & decorate them with heavy jewelry, vibrant colors, and the female elephants wear anklets that ring while they walk.
The elephant which is decorated at its best will be awarded and they have several games like elephant racing, tug of war, elephant polo. It is one of the oldest festivals celebrated in Jaipur. Elephants and other animals like horses & camels also participate in the festival.
The festival attracts a lot of tourists, and it is scheduled for March 28 for the year 2022. If you get the chance to visit Jaipur you must experience this festival.
Summer Festival
The Summer Festival is organized in Mount Abu, which depicts the culture and folk of Rajasthan. The festival starts from the day of Buddha Poornima and is continued for two days in excitement and enthusiasm.
The festival is one of its kind which showcases many different activities like live band shows, skating races, horse races, tug of war, bating races, and many more. It is more like three days dedicated to complete fun and enjoyment.
Mount Abu is the only hill station in Rajasthan known for its natural beauty, greenery, landscape views. This festival brings out the tradition and art of Rajasthan. One of the famous attractions of the festival is the Shaam-E-Qawwali that the well-known singers of the state perform, and you must not wish the great and royal firework ending that set the sky look magical.
The festival is organized in May. You can also experience the very famous Ghoomar, the folk dance of Rajasthan and enjoy the delicious Rajasthani cuisine and local food.
Brij Holi
Holi is the occasion of colors and fun which is celebrated all over India with full enthusiasm, but in Bharatpur, you will get to experience the festival at another level. The festival is often known as Brij Mahotsav which is celebrated in the honor of Lord Krishna for three days during the Phalgun Shukla Paksha.
In this, the villagers are seen in traditional attires and they keep dancing out of joy and excitement with the colors & they also perform Raslila, which is a dance that portrays the love story of Lord Krishna & Radha.
If you Bharatpur during this festival, you will hear the echo all around, and you will love the festival more. Bharatpur is located near the birthplace of Lord Krishna and people also take the dip in the ghats of Banganga River and offer prayer at the Krishna temple.
For 2022, the festival is scheduled from March 23 till March 30.
Pushkar Fair
The fair is often recognized as the Pushkar Camel Fair or Kartik Mela. This festival is organized in the Kartik month according to the Hindu calendar and ends on the day of Kartik Purnima.
It attracts a considerable number of tourists and it is said that this fair alone attracts more than two lakh visitors. It is one of the largest cattle, camel, and horse fairs in India, and not only it is a place for trading but it is an essential place for the Hindu as it has the Pushkar lake.
The fair organizes different activities like music, dance, songs, various competitions like bridal competition, mustache competition, camel races, and many more.
They set up stalls for food and the shopping of bangles and other local things. You can also experience the hot air balloon rides, handicraft bazaars, parade of beautifully decorated camels.
For the year 2022, the fair is scheduled from November 11 till November 22.
Urs Festival
As we say India is a country with diverse nature and different religions, where at one place Rajasthan is known for Hindu religion and Rajput Rulers at the other hand it is one of the significant sacred places for Muslim that is located in Ajmer.
Every year Urs Festival is organized in Ajmer to show or dedicate respect to the Sufi Saint Moinuddin Chisti, who founded the Chishtiya Sufi order in India on the account of his death anniversary.
It is a 6-day long festival which has qawwali singing and at this time thousands of visitors come especially to visit Ajmer and be a part of this festival. At this time the tomb is cleaned with rose water and later prayers are offered.
The Mehfil sessions and the qawwallis are the main highlights of the festival which creates the surroundings and you get to indulge in the power of positivity.
Rajasthan International Folk Festival
The Rajasthan International Folk Festival was started with the initiative to promote traditional music & folks in the year 2007. The festival was created by the partnership of JVF (Jaipur Virasat Foundation) and Mehrangarh Museum Trust.
The festival is organized at the Mehrangarh Fort in Jodhpur. Apart from all these the folk festival is supported by UNESCO. The festival gives an open stage to all the folk artists from all the country as well as around the globe to showcase their talent & spread their folk with others.
The International Folk Festival is scheduled at the time of Sharad Purnima which has the brightest full moon of the year, and along with that, it is attended by around 250 artists from different parts of the world and India as well.
Kumbhalgarh Festival
If you are an art & culture enthusiast, it is a paradise for you as it has many things for you to offer with the experience of forts and traditional Mewar vibes. Kumbhalgarh Festival is one of the attraction points for many tourists.
The Kumbhalgarh is colored with vibrant lights, the aroma of delicious foods with the music and dance the perfect combination. The Kumbhalgarh Fort is the 2nd most important citadel after Chittorgarh in the Mewar region.
The three-day-long festival is organized by the department of Rajasthan tourism and not only for the tourists but it is very astonishing for the locals as well. You can experience various types of competitions like Mehendi making, turban tying, and many more.
Kota Adventure Festival
This festival is perfect even if you are in shortage of time as you can be a part of any activity and you have the freedom to explore but it is an attraction point for all the adventure enthusiasts as it offers several activities.
The place is just like name any adventure activity and you will find it here, it has activities like trekking, rock climbing, rafting, parasailing, angling, excursion, water skiing, kayaking, gliding, windsurfing and many more, the list won’t end.
The festival attracts a lot of tourists from all over the world and along with the adventure activities you can also take part in rural expeditions.
Baneshwar Fair
It is one of the most crowded fairs you will experience. The Baneshwar Fair is a tribal fair that is organized every year in Dungarpur and it is described as the ‘Kumbh Mela’ for the tribals.
The majority of gatherings are from the area of Banswara, Udaipur, and Dungarpur and it consists of Bhils. At the fair, a night bonfire is organized and people sing folk songs, dance around the bonfire all night.
Apart from the folk songs, magic shows, acrobatics shows, animal shows and all are also organized and also you can view a large bazaar where you can get fancy & local goods.
The fair is scheduled from February 23 to February 27 for the year 2022.
Desert Festival
When you are in Rajasthan you should know how to dance to the tunes and if you don’t they will teach you. The Desert Festival is one of that places in Rajasthan that is framed in the sandy dunes and along with that, you get to explore the culture of Rajasthan more closely.
The folk fusion will drive you away and you will love the place with the musical surroundings and enjoy every moment while you are at that place. The festival was initiated basically for the tourists who are from out of India so that they can explore the culture and folks properly at one place and thus it became a ritual to attend the Desert Festival if you are in Rajasthan.
You can experience incredible live music, puppet shows, and many more which might take you back to the memory of childhood if you are grown up in the rural areas. You will find nomads who perform fire dance and also many different kinds of competitions for the visitors.
The Desert Festival is scheduled from February 7 to February 9, 2022.
These are some of the best festivals that you must explore in Rajasthan.
edited and proofread by nikita sharma
