Shilpgram Arts Festival in Rajasthan
-
There is nothing more exciting than coming into a town to find out that you have arrived in time for a yearly festival. How lucky we felt when we heard that in Shilpgram, a mere two kilometres away from Udaipur, there was an arts festival taking place as we speak.
Shilpgram Festival
Dancers, performers, artists and trades people from all over India have come to Shipgram for a 10 day festival to show off their talents.
The weather was perfect when we arrived and the crowds were still small. After paying our 25 Rs entrance fee we walked in to the fair grounds to music and dancing at the front gate.
A troop was singing and performing in a circle and we stopped to have a look. Once they finished we moved on to enjoy the rest of the festival. Our next stop was a silversmith. He was hand making pots and utensils as well as little figurines of insects and other figurines.
The Metal Smith at Shilpgram
Dave took some photographs and talked to them all for a little while. The entire family was there at the festival working together. Mother, father, son and grandson all worked from stoking the fire to molding the metal. They didn’t have to travel too far as they were from the province of Rajasthan.
We moved on to another group of men from Kerala. They invited us to watch them play and sing. Having a couple of foreigners watching you perform really draws a crowd and by the time they were half way through the song, a large crowd arrived. We saw a guy throw them a 100 Rs, and that is when we realised that we are supposed to be giving money, like a busker fair.
We gave them 50 and were on our way.
Musicians at Shilpgram
We walked through the food stalls and jewelry stalls. It had a midway feel, we even saw a Ferris wheel in the distance. We didn’t make it far however, instead we came to a troop performing in drag. They were singing and dancing and definitely telling jokes, but we couldn’t understand a thing. They seemed to like having us around. After I gave them 40 Rs, they invited me up on stage to dance with them. As some of you may know, I never turn down an invitation, so I ran up on stage and danced away making a fool out of myself probably being completely improper for a lady in India. But they loved it and I had a blast.
Video Click Here!
Every corner we turned there were performers and artists. Dave snapped his camera happily and I posed for photos with Indian tourists. We were as much a part of the show as the performers it seemed and we loved every minute of it.
The highlight performance for us at Shilpgram was from a troop from Northern India. At first we thought it was going to be a little lame as a guy danced on stilts, but then the star came out.
A young man with pots piled high on his head climbed up a pole to a tightrope strung high in the air. He was filled with skill. He walked on the rope, walked on pans, rolled along with a tire frame all while balancing the pots on his head. That was feat enough, but once he started swinging the rope back and forth while balancing on one leg, that is when we were extremely impressed.
Tight Rope Act
It was surprising to see that I was never afraid for his safety. He was confident and sure and his skill was strong. I didn’t have a doubt that he would succeed and succeed he did.
I could go on and on with a list of things that we saw at the festival of Shilpgram, but it is more fun to look at a few of Dave’s photos.
We had a fantastic time. We spoke with people, we posed for photos, we performed ourselves and we were thoroughly entertained.
Information
Entrance fee is 25 Rs.
Shilpgram Festival happens every year in December for 10 days.
A rickshaw out to the festival is about 75 Rs. Bargain with your driver and he will wait for you.
Shilpgram is located only 3 km from the old town centre.
17 Responses to Shilpgram Arts Festival in Rajasthan
Leave a Reply
Sponsors
The Planet D on TV!
Posts
- How Not to Get Locked Up Abroad on May 21, 2012 by debndave - No Comment
- Gondola Parking in Venice, Italy on May 17, 2012 by debndave - 9 Comments
- New Tools for Planning the Perfect Summer Trip on May 16, 2012 by debndave - 3 Comments
- Win a Trip for 4 With Intrepid Travel on May 15, 2012 by debndave - 1 Comment
- Honesty, Fear and Triumph – Dear Reader on May 27, 2011 by debndave - 166 Comments
- Petra by Night in Photos on May 4, 2011 by debndave - 149 Comments
- What’s With All the Hatin’ in Travel Blogging? on October 29, 2011 by debndave - 127 Comments
- So You Want to Be a Pro Blogger in The Travel Business on November 14, 2011 by debndave - 126 Comments
Online hotel reservations
What incredible luck that the festival was on nearby! And you’re right – those pictures at the end just say everything. Looking back at my trip it was this happy little coincidences and local festivals that I remember most
.-= Shannon OD´s last blog ..A Little Question…Should You Travel With a Laptop? =-.
So true Shannon, our most special moments on this trip have been the festivals. Incredible.
When you luck onto a festival while traveling …it’s like being invited to a special party where you are a special guest, because people want you to share in their celebration. I hope it was a blast! It looks cool.
I passed your website along to a traveling friend:Aizick. He loved your site…I think he’s pitching a documentary idea to go to Africa.
Thanks Dave and Bran! Good luck to your friend Aizick! I hope he loves Africa!
LOVE the photos – and I loved the video you posted on YouTube as well – it really looks like it was a blast. How lucky for you that you were there at the right time!
.-= Trisha Miller´s last blog ..Interview: Lisa Lambden, New York Video School =-.
Pingback: uberVU - social comments
The event of art and craft festival well described. Really you visited Shilpgram on the right time. If you missed some of the folk dances then visit my channel “UdaipurPlus” on YouTube. You can also check more photographs on my site http://www.udaipurplus.com
Tanmay! Thank you for the comment. I will check out the videos for sure, the dancers are amazing in Udaipur!
Hey, check out my new site specially dedicated to Shilpgram Festival. Have a look at the site and check Shilpgram Festival 2011 on Shilpgram.in
Thanks!
UdaipurPlus.com
Pingback: Indian Arts Festival in Udaipur Rajasthan | The Planet D: Around the World Adventure Couple
I’m a new reader to your blog! Gorgeous pictures! Can’t wait to read more about your travels in India, we are heading there in March!
Fantastic Tracy, have a great trip and keep us posted on how your like India!
Pingback: Colorful Traveling Musician in India | Picture the Planet: Travel Photography for the World
Rajasthan is a place of festivals. The people are still very much attached to the roots and even on non-festival days you can find them singing and dancing in the evening. Though Shilpgram is one of the mainstays. If you happen to go there on a non-festive day you can very well get your own bonfire in the middle of the desert. I had it once and it was truly amazing to say the least.
.-= abhishek@relationship´s last blog ..krishna janmashtami or krishnashtami 2010 =-.
That is awesome advice. We are planning on going back this winter, we will have to check it out and have a bonfire. I love it.
Lovely pictures here! Sometimes you come across funny interesting things in India. Like the human driven ferris wheel in the picture below.
London Photography recently posted..Indian Ferris Wheel
Pingback: Picture Perfect Portraits: Children of the World