General Information
Location: Udaipur, Rajasthan
Significance : To greet the arrival of spring season
Time of Celebration : Mewar Festival held in March - April
Mewar Festival is an inspiriting celebration to welcome the advent of spring. This festival is celebrated in the romantic city of Udaipur and interestingly coincides with the Ganguar festival. The Mewar Festival offers a n iconographic treat to the visitors and the participants with its traditional Rajasthani songs, dances, parades, devotional heart stirring music and effulgent display of fireworks. Brilliantly appareled women carry images of goddess Gauri and make their way to Lake Pichola. The festival ends with a grand procession of boats on the lake.
History:
Legends enumerate that once Maharana Udai Singh the founder of this city, while on a hunting adventure met an ascetic meditating on a hill that peeped over the Lake Pichola. The sage blessed Maharana and advised him to construct a palace in the environs beatified by a fertile valley; an azure blue stream, a striking lake, an pleasant altitude and a meadow of low mountains. Consequently, Maharana founded this city in 1559.
Activities:
Women folk attired in radiant traditional costumes congregate to dress the images of Isar and Gangaur. Later, they take these elegantly adorned images of Isar and Gangaur for ceremonial procession which embarks on various routes of the city and proceeds to the Gangaur Ghat at Lake Pichhola. There the images are placed onto special boats.
Once the religious rituals of the festival are over, it is time for cultural events to unfurl inviting a lot of activity and cheer. Rajasthan's effervescent culture is represented through its enticing songs, inimitable dances and other exciting programs. The festival culminates with an impressive fireworks display.
How to Reach
By Air : Flights to Udaipur are available from Mumbai, Jaipur and Delhi.
By Train : Udaipur is directly linked by rail with the major cities.
By Road : A wide network of bus services connects Udaipur with several destinations. Some of the important distances are Agra, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Jodhpur and Mount Abu. |
