Fairs, Festivals, Folk Music and Folk Dances.

Fairs of Rajasthan

1. Banganga Fair:-It is said that the stream of Banganga was formed when Arjun, one of the Pandavas, shot an arrow to quench the thirst of dying Bhishma Pitamah, who was a brave warrior and had been badly wounded in the battle of Mahabharata.
2. Chandrabagha Fair:-Thousands of devotees gather here at the time of fair to take a holy dip in the sacred waters of river Chandrabhaga.
3. Gogaji Fair:-Gogaji is regarded as a saint by the Kayam Khani Muslims who are beieved to be his descendants. He is an eminent warrior-hero of the region. Hindus called him by the name of Goga Veer while Muslims call him Jahar Peer.
4. Jambheswar Fair:-Jambheswar ji is considered an in carination of Lord Vishnu himself, by the Bishnois. He always stood for self-control, truth and non-violence. Two temples of Jambheswar ji are situated near the town of Nokha – one in village Mukam and the other on the sand dune of Samarthal.
5. Kaila Devi Fair:-One of the most venerated fairs of Rajasthan, Kaila devi fair is hels at the temple of Kaila Devi, who is worshipped as the guardian deity by the Yadavas, the Khinchis, and the princess of Karauli.
6. Kapil Muni Fair:-The largest fair of Bikaner, Kapil Muni Fair is named after the Kapil who was a great sage, believed to have done ‘tapasya’ here for the redemption of mankind. Kapil Muni has been mentioned in Puranas and has been said to descend from Lord Brahma (the creator of the world) himself.
7. Karni Mata Fair:-Karni Mata led an ascetic life and dedicated herself to the service of the poor and downtrodden and is believed to possess superinatural powers. She laid the foundation of Deshnok and her main followers are ‘Charans’.
8. Khatu Shyamji Fair:-Thousands of devotees visit the temple during this annual fair, many of them for performing the ‘Jadula’ ceremony of their children, where the child ‘s head is shaven clean for the first time.
9. Khetlaji Fair:-There are shops and festivity that is characteristic of all Rajasthani fairs. The bubbling people who throng to the fair in their colorful attire certainly add the charms to this gala occasion.
10. Mallinath Fair:-One of the biggest cattle fairs of Rajasthan, Mallinath Fair is just the right place to visit to look out for highly popular breeds of cattle such as cows, camels, sheep, goats and horses.
11. Nagaur Fair:-The famous Nagaur fair is known for the cattle tradesmen with colorful turbans and long mustaches that come there with their fine breed of camels, horses, cows, and bullocks.
12. Pushkar Fair:-One of the most sought-after fair in Rajasthan, a lot of tourists come to Pushkar Fair on pilgrimage as well as to see the display of a mystifying array of items.
13. Ramdevra Fair:-Baba Ramdev was a Tanwar Rajput who took ‘Samadhi’ (left his mortal body for the heavenly abode) in 1458 AD. He was believed to have miraculous powers and is considered an incarination of Lord Krishna.
14. Sheetla Mata Fair:-It is said that if the wrath of Sheetla Mata is let loose, then epidemics spread. This fair is held to make offerings and worship the deity to please her and keep her pacified. In the shrine, a red stone represents the deity.
15. Shri Mahavirji Fair:-A sacred place to Digambar Jains, followers of Mahavir ji, they come from far off places to pay their homage to the venerated saint at the Mahavirji temple, situated in an enclosure known as ‘Katala’.
16. Sitabari Fair:-As the legend goes, Sita, the wife of Lord Ram, was left by Lakshman here to serve the period of her banishment. He also shot an arrow from where a stream of clear water sprouted for Sita.
17. Urs Fair:-The remains of Sufi saint Khwaja Moin-ud-din Chishti lie buried in ‘Dargah Sharif’ in Ajmer and are held in held in great reverence by devotees of all communities. Khwaja had come from Persia and established Chishtia order of ‘fakirs’ in India.

Festivals of Rajasthan

1. Holi
2. Diwali
3. Bhai Dooj
4. Rakhi
5. Dushera
6. Muharram
7. Hadoti Festival, Kota
8. Braj Festival, Bharatpur
9. Desert Festival, Jaisalmer
10. Summer Festival, Mt. Abu
11. Marwar Festival, Jodhpur
12. Camel Festival, Bikaner
13. Gangaur Festival, Jaipur
14. Teej Festival, Jaipur
15. Mewar Festival, Udaipur

Folk Music of Rajasthan

Rajasthan has a diverse collection of musician castes, including langas, sapera, bhopa, jogi and Manganiar. There are two traditional classes of musicians: the Langas, who stuck mostly exclusively to Muslim audiences and styles, and the Manganiars, who had a more liberal approach.

Manganiar are professional hereditary caste musicians. They mostly live in Jaisalmer and Barmer districts of Rajasthan.They play an interesting string instrument played with a bow. It is know as Kamaicha.

Manganiars (Though Muslims) sing invariable among Hindu patron families. They serve during childbirth, weddings and other ceremonies. Manganiars are very good are rhythmic instruments like Dholak and Khadtal. Their musical compositions are very complex and have improvisatory rules build into it. Virtuoso rhythm playing has largely added to their success in music.

Langas are professional caste musicians. They live in western Rajasthan and provide musical service to Sindhi Sipahi community. They sing songs related to life-passage ceremonies i.e. birth, marriage and related ceremonies or festivals.

Historically for at least four hundred years the group has been providing music on Gujratan and Sindhi Sarangi. This evolved chordophone, the Sindhi Sarangi has helped them to enhance the quality of compositions.

The Langas continue to serve their patrons but for the last two decades, they have become a big force in representing folk music of Rajasthan on all types of electronic and other popular medias. They are widely travelled artists in the whole world. They have a strong voice and have an improvisatory technique to improve the quality of songs.

Folk Dances of Rajasthan

1. Ghoomar Dance:-is a traditional as well as an enthusiastic folk dance of Rajasthan. Ghoomar or Ghumar was basically developed by the Bhil tribe and was adopted by other Rajasthani communities. The Ghoomar dance is a particularly a women’s dance and performed by the women for exclusively ladies gatherings. Ghoomar dance is performed by groups of women moving in a circular fashion and in swirling robes accompanied by men and women singing together.
2. Kachi Ghori Dance:-This folk dance originated from the bandit regions of Shekhawati and is generally performed for the entertainment of the bridegroom’s party.This dance is performed by mens on dummy horses. Men wear elaborate costumes- red turbans and dhotis and kurtas, embellished with brilliant mirror-work and ride the dummy horses. These dancers move rhythmically to the beating of drums and fifes by holding a naked sword on theie hand while a singer narrates the exploits of the Bavaria bandits of Shekhawati region hrough his song.
3. Gair Dance
4. Panihari Dance
5. Sekhawati’s Geendada Dance
6. Chang Dance
7. Dandiya Dance
8. Dhol Dance
9. Bum Dance
10. Tera Taali Dance
11. Chari Dance

Folk Dances of Nomadic Tribe:-

1. Kalbeliya Dance
2. Shankaria Dance
3. Panihari Dance
4. Idoni Dance
5. Sankhiyas Dance
6. Banjara Dance
7. Bagariya Dance
8. Bhawai Dance