Chiiz Volume 1 : Pushkar Photography

Pushkar Camel Fair
villagers from neighboring states
flock in with their animals. More
than 25,000 camels are traded in
Pushkar each year and it makes for
the largest trading zone of camels
in India. The camel trading in
Pushkar is a spectacular event and
the panoramic view of the traders
waiting with the camels for the
customers to buy is an interesting
sight to watch. Trust me when I
say this but you have to be there to
enjoy its sheer magnificence. Even
though camels are the focal point
of trading in Pushkar, other cattle
and livestock are also a part of the
Tarachand Gawariya
Bhopal, India
Pushkar is filled with shops that sell
possibly everything that would be
required by animals that are bought
there. Colorful ornaments and bells
of all shapes and sizes adorn the
entire town. Every possible shade of
yellow, red and pink is visible in the
town around the Brahma Temple
which is located at the Brahma
Sarovar(Lake). Once a year, on
Kartik Poornima, the full moon night
of the Hindu lunar month of Kartik
(October – November), a religious
festival is held in Brahma’s honour.
Thousands of pilgrims bathe in
the holy Pushkar Lake adjacent to
Evening Gatherings
Canon EOS 6D 16mm F/4 1/120s ISO 1000
and be a part of the entertaining
performances by artists like
‘Advaita’, Prem Joshua band
and Harshdeep Kaur. There were
singing competitions, bride and
groom competitions, promotion
of local talents, hot air balloon
demonstrations, and many other
such events which added to the
joyous celebrations.
To understand what makes this
small town at the edge of the Thar
Desert bulge at the seams with
people and camels every year, we
must look at its origin. The religious
aspect of the mela predates the
camel fair by thousands of years;
an event of considerable religious
and economic significance that
combines the secular and the
spiritual, something possible only in
India. The Pushkar mela is attended
every year by up to 50,000 camels,
900,000 people and, according to
Hindu beliefs, 33 million gods –
the entire Hindu pantheon. Once
a year, this ancient pilgrimage site
becomes the stage for a unique
show where faith and commerce
Utkarsha Soni
Indore, India
Painting The Walls
Nikon D90 34mm F/5.6 1/250s ISO 320
Kshitij Mishra
Ajmer, India
Breathing Fire
Canon EOS 5D Mark III 33mm F/4 1/250s ISO1600
the temple. Various rites are also
held at the temple during the fair.
The day also marks the end of the
famous Pushkar Camel Fair.
come together and gyrate in festive
spirits.
trade. Horses and bullocks have
become an integral part of this
mela in the last few years.
One of the main attractions of this
year’s mela was the cultural event.
People would gather every evening
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