Tag: Fair & Exhibition

“The studio is a laboratory, not a factory. An exhibition is the result of your experiments, but the process is never-ending”

Culture

Chhau Dance & Paryavaran Mela in Ranchi

We went to the Paryavaran Mela in Ranchi and saw a lovely Chhau dance in the evening. Chhau binds together people from different social strata and ethnic backgrounds with diverse social practices, beliefs, professions, and languages. This semi-classical dance form originated at the royal court of Saraikela, now in Jharkhand. However, increasing industrialization, economic pressures, and new media are leading to a decrease in collective participation with communities becoming disconnected from their roots. Continue reading Chhau Dance & Paryavaran Mela in Ranchi

Judhajit Roychoudhury10 Comments
Culture

Shahi Snan, Kumbh Mela, Prayagraj, 2019

The Kumbh Mela — the largest congregation in the world — sees world gathering of saints, pilgrims, devotees to take holy dips in the sacred confluence of the Ganga, the Yamuna, and the mystical Saraswati. Bathing in these rivers is thought to cleanse and purify ones’ soul of all sins. Recognized by UNESCO as India’s ‘Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity’, Kumbh Mela never ceases to amaze and its amazement is always felt in the grandeur of it being the largest religious-cultural festival in the world.  Continue reading Shahi Snan, Kumbh Mela, Prayagraj, 2019

Judhajit Roychoudhury23 Comments
Culture

The Baghdad Peace Festival, 2018

Baghdad was founded by the Abbasid caliph al-Mansur in 762 CE. When he founded a completely new city for his capital, he chose the name Medina al-Salaam or The City of Peace. This was the official name on coins, weights, and other official usage, although the common people continued to use the old name. Baghdad soon became the home to pioneering scientists, astronomers, poets, mathematicians, musicians, historians, legalists and philosophers. The Baghdad Peace Festival was started in 2011 to remind people of that history. Continue reading The Baghdad Peace Festival, 2018

Indrajit RoyChoudhury20 Comments
Travel

Malana | History, Hashish, Himalaya

Malana is an ancient Indian village in the state of Himachal Pradesh. Much before going to Malana village, I had read quite a lot about it.  This solitary village in the Malana Nala, a side valley of the Parvati Valley to the north-east of Kullu Valley, is isolated from the rest of the world. The peaks of Chanderkhani and Deo Tibba shadow the village. It is situated on a remote plateau by the side of the torrential Malana river, at a height of around 10,000 feet above sea level. Malana has its own lifestyle and social structure and people are strict in following their customs.  Continue reading Malana | History, Hashish, Himalaya

Judhajit Roychoudhury22 Comments
Culture

The Kolkata Book Fair, 2015

International Kolkata Book Fair is a late winter fair in Kolkata. It is a unique book fair in the sense of not being a trade fair – the book fair is primarily for the general public rather than whole-sale distributors. It celebrates international literature and reflects India’s much-loved reading tradition. The Kolkata Book Fair, recognised by International Publishers Association, Geneva, is also the largest Book Fair of the world in terms of visitors. Continue reading The Kolkata Book Fair, 2015

Judhajit Roychoudhury3 Comments
Culture

Maha Kumbh Mela | In Search of the Divine Nectar

Kumbh derives its name from the immortal Pot of Nectar, which the Demigods (Devtas) and Demons (Asuras) fought over, described in ancient Vedic scriptures known as the Puranas. It is these Vedic literatures that have stood the test of time, out of which the tradition has evolved into the one that the world now knows as The Kumbh Mela or The Kumbha Mela. The festival is one of the largest peaceful gatherings in the world, and considered as the “world’s largest congregation of religious pilgrims”. Continue reading Maha Kumbh Mela | In Search of the Divine Nectar

Indrajit RoyChoudhury1 Comment
Culture

The Gangtok Flower Show

The tiny state of Sikkim in Northeast India is home to 600 species of orchids! It is to showcase this wonderful bounty of nature and other exotic flowers that Sikkim hosts an international flower festival every year from March to May. The state is home to 240 species of trees and ferns, 150 varieties of gladioli, 46 types of rhododendrons along with a variety of magnolias and many other foliage plants. Continue reading The Gangtok Flower Show

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