Colour, food, adventure define the Pushkar mela quite aptly
Situated in the center-eastern part of Rajasthan, Pushkar is a colourful city just like the rest of the Rajasthan. A pilgrimage site for Hindus and Sikhs, it has many temples, gurudwara, and ghats that date back to the 18th century. And besides the cafes and markets that attract millions of tourists from all over the world, the biggest point of attraction in the city is the Pushkar Mela or Pushkar Festival or the Pushkar Camel Fair.
Locally called the Kartik Mela or PushkarkaMela, this annual festival according to the Hindu calendar starts with the month of Kartik and ends on the Kartik Purnima - late October and early November. The mela offers camel races, dances, food, and various unique competitions that you enjoy without having to pay. Read to know more exciting things to do at the Pushkar fair.
Oh my Camel! The biggest attraction of the Pushkar Mela is the camel race, camel beauty pageant, camel parade, camel dance, and camel shaving among other activities involving camels. These competitions are just some ways for cattle and camel traders to display their camel’s virility. The camels are decked in colourful designs, saddles, jewelry, and other accessories that attract people immediately and the camel with most people riding it wins the competition.
Hot air balloon You can have a fun sky ride even in India, as Pushkar is one of the few places where one can easily hop on to a hot air balloon ride. And being in that balloon miles up from the ground of Pushkar will give you an eagle-eye view of the Mela making the camels appear tiny. In fact, you can also try on other adventurous things like paramotoring, horse riding, and quad biking.
A dip in the holy lakes Since it is celebrated from Kartik Ekadashi to Kartik Poornima, this seven-day festival is also an attraction for devotees as the full moon night during this time is considered auspicious as legends have it that on this day Lord Brahma sprung up the Pushkar Lake and gods and goddesses came to bath in it. And it is to commemorate this mythological phenomenon that people from across India come to dip in the holy waters of the Pushkar Lake and pay homage to Lord Brahma. It is said that by doing so you wash away all your sins.
Unique competitions Well, besides the camel beauty race, the other competitions which also has a prize money, involve longest mustache competition and the bride and groom competition wherein the best wedding attire wins the title.
Apart from all these, you also get to enjoy the diverse art and craft of Rajasthan presented by the rural artisan communities.
