As affluent as in culture and traditions, Jodhpur is rich in festivals as well. Jodhpur is diverse when it comes to festivals. The festivals celebrated here reflect royal folklore & lifestyle of the city. Throughout the festivals city appears more vivid and lively.
Sorts of Festivals celebrated vary from; Dance Festivals, Music Festival, Religious festivals so on. Few of them are enumerated beneath.
Marwar Festival: Celebrated in the month of September, its one of the most Conventional festival of Incredible Jodhpur. Also known as Maand Festival, it is celebrated for two days. This festival is held every year, in the remembrance of Rajputs and Rajasthan Rulers. The main emphasis is on Classical Music and Folk Dance of this region. The locals sing song and perform dance reminiscing romantic past of rulers. Apart from this, there are also Camel rides, tattoo shows, horse riding & polo. The Venue of the festival includes Umaid Bhawan Palace, Mehrangarh Fort and Mandore.
Kite Festival: The International Desert Kite Festival is held each year during Makar Sakranti in the month of January, which lasts for three days. The participants come from all over to compete and participate in the Festival. The festival begins with an air show, where aircraft release the kites in the sky. Throughout the festival one gets to see the Colorful kites racing towards the skies. There are miscellaneous competitions held, the winners get awarded by the Maharaja of Jodhpur. The location for the festival involves Polo Ground and Umaid Bhawan Palace. The whole city comes along to witness the three days fest, the sky appears to be filled with ornaments. It indeed is a beautiful sight.
Nagaur Fair: Nagaur fair is the second largest massive fair of India; the main highlight is the Cattle trade. Nearly about a lack cattle’s are traded every year. These animals involve camels, sheep’s, horses, cows, bulls etc. The fair lasts for about 8 days, the animals are well decorated in rajasthani style with turbans, boots, and clothes are presented in the fair to create curiosity among the buyers. Besides from cattle’s there are bazaars set up for handicrafts, woodenwares, spices, leather items etc. For the purpose of entertainment; cattle fights, camel races are arranged for the visitors. Other attractions include Jugglers, Puppeteers, Musicians, Folk dancers, Fortune tellers etc.
Gangaur Fair: The festival of Gangaur is devoted to Goddess Parvati, and is generally celebrated by Women. It starts on the following day of holi and continues for the period of fifteen days. Married women celebrate this festival to seek blessings for well-being of their Husbands and their married life. On the other hand unmarried girls seek blessings for a good partner and happy life. Women dress nicely and apply henna to their hands and feet indicating they are married; then in evening they pray and worship Goddess Parvati. This festival mostly celebrated by all rajasthani women, with joy and incredible dedication.
RIFF: Rajasthan International Folk Festival is one of the biggest music festivals held in Rajasthan. This falls during sharad purima, end of each year. The main sponsor of the event is his Highness Maharaja Gaj Singh. The festival is held in the Meherangarh Fort and locations in close proximity to the Fort. This festival hosts musicians, visitors from all across the globe; Artists are welcomed to perform at the Music fest. Every year various artists from different countries come to participate & manifest their music skills promoting local music. Well – Known rajasthani folk artists are also part of this, the merge of western music with Classical Musical is breathtaking. Musicians perform different genres, which is interesting to those with different music choices.
RIFF has gained international acclamation through years, as its supported by UNESCO. It has also won award by TIMES MAGAZINE as one of popular musical events to be held in Mehrangarh Fort. It’s a five day event, also the numbers of tourist increases during RIFF. Also part of this festival is Sufi Festival, Flamenco Festival, and Rajasthani Folk Music. RIFF is an initiative by Mehrangarh Museum Trust & Jaipur Virasat Foundation.
Holi: Holi is a festival celebrated globally in India. It’s among popular celebrated festivals in Jodhpur. Holi is known as Festival of Colors. It falls in the month of March, which is also end of winter season in India. Holi Celebration typically lasts for two days. Day one is where Holika dahan takes place, which depicts end of evil and progressing towards new beginnings. Day Second is when people play holi, by applying colors on each other. It is a very colorful and lively festival. Many tourists plan their visits in the following month so as to be a part of this celebration.
Diwali: Diwali is the most auspicious festival in India. Just like the rest of India, Jodhpur also celebrates Diwali. This festival has a brief history, behind all the celebration. Mainly it is celebrated to commemorate Lord Ram’s return from exile after 14 years. Diwali is a festival of lights. During Diwali people light lamps and diyas out side their houses and welcome Goddesses Laxmi to their homes. Goddess Laxmi symbolises wealth and Prosperity. People wear new clothes, several food dishes are prepared to please the lord. Fireworks are the main highlight of diwali, where people burn crackers at night after the Puja. It’s occurs between October and September.
