Tarnetar Mela
Date : End of August - Sep 3, 2011
Venue : Trineteshwar temple in Saurashtra region, Gujarat
The Tarnetar Mela, organized in the month of August/September every year to commemorate the wedding of Arjuna and Draupadi, is one of the popular religious festivals of North India
The site of fair is the Trineteshwar temple at Gujarat where the wedding is supposed to have taken place. It is also believed that a dip in the reservoir attached to the temple known as Papanshu (the destroyer of sins), will cleanse a devotee of all his sins.
The mela is attended by tribal youth all over Saurashtra, including the Kolis and the Bharwads or Rabaris. They come dressed in colorful dhotis, embroidered jackets and eye-catching turbans. The Tarnetra Chhatirs (elaborately embroidered umbrellas) are held by bachelors. If a girl stops by and starts a conversation with a bachelor, it is taken as a sign of her interest in marrying him.
Other attractions include folk song and dance performances, including the famous Rasada, performed in a single circle by hundreds of women, to the accompaniment of drums and flutes. There are also exhibitions of rural handicrafts, cattle shows and competitive sports.
Venue : Trineteshwar temple in Saurashtra region, Gujarat
The Tarnetar Mela, organized in the month of August/September every year to commemorate the wedding of Arjuna and Draupadi, is one of the popular religious festivals of North India
The site of fair is the Trineteshwar temple at Gujarat where the wedding is supposed to have taken place. It is also believed that a dip in the reservoir attached to the temple known as Papanshu (the destroyer of sins), will cleanse a devotee of all his sins.
The mela is attended by tribal youth all over Saurashtra, including the Kolis and the Bharwads or Rabaris. They come dressed in colorful dhotis, embroidered jackets and eye-catching turbans. The Tarnetra Chhatirs (elaborately embroidered umbrellas) are held by bachelors. If a girl stops by and starts a conversation with a bachelor, it is taken as a sign of her interest in marrying him.
Other attractions include folk song and dance performances, including the famous Rasada, performed in a single circle by hundreds of women, to the accompaniment of drums and flutes. There are also exhibitions of rural handicrafts, cattle shows and competitive sports.
