A festival is a celebration, a co-mingling of people sharing an expression of culture and upholding a tradition. A festival then is a series of activities linking religion, eulogizing agrarian bounty, the performing arts, an area to display traditional arts and crafts, the buying and selling of local produce, cementing ties between various communities through marriage and trade and in the modern context, a tapestry of the vibrancy that makes Gujarat hosting within its gamut a series of seminars, shows, discussions and workshops along with other audience participating involvements.
There was a time when even the simplest of cuisines, the ubiquitous ‘ gol gappa’ achieved the status of a gourmet item with a variety of flavors, condiments, sauces and the underlying connectivity between the basic ingredients. ‘Gol gappa’, patasha’, ‘puchka’, ‘pani puri’, so many names to tantalize the taste buds and so much a part of this country’s heritage that an entire mela developed around it in Ahmedabad. The area just outside sarangpur gate used to became a conglomerate of galas, larries, rekdis and ever so many people sampling the joys of the puri with flavored water trickling down lip smacking chins. A wonderfully novel way of welcoming dev Diwali, the legendary celebration of Lord Vishnu’s return to Vaikunth.
‘Symbolically smashing the head of the hard/puffed puri, stuffing it with the spoils of battle and eating it with a flourish’. That is one of the morbid explanations hovering around a festival dedicated to the celebration of food, which the average Ahmedabadi seems so enamored about.
This is just a meandering path down certain well known fairs and melas. Every village, every community has their own variations of festivals, most so localized that they have never flowered beyond their village set up, replete with localized rituals and sustained year after year by the local community owing allegiance to their own aspect of music, ritual, dance, color, and form. Most community rural festivals honor an aspect of the mother goddess pertinent to that particular community, its needs, requirements and geographical conditions.
Amongst melas which preserves the old while bringing in a new flavor, are urban creations of college festivals; events organized by quasi government organizations consisting of theater, dance, cuisine and the like. A similar rural design festival in its third successful year of existence is the convocation mela organized by the Kala Raksha Vidyalaya in Tunda Vandh Village; the nearest town to what once was once a patch of pristine beauty and splendor is Mandvi in Kutch. Kala Raksha Vidyalaya is a design educational institute meant for Traditional Artisans. . The vision of the Vidyalaya is to develop a new approach to design education based on existing textile traditions. One important activity is to discover, articulate and utilize the existing systems of knowledge, skills, design and innovation to working traditional artisans. The focus of the institute is on acquiring knowledge and skills that will enable artisans to use design effectively in order to successfully reach appropriate new markets, while at the same time strengthening traditional identity and instilling a sense of pride in their heritage. The design school is a unique one of its kind set up with ut most care and sensitivity. This December the third batch of artisan students will graduate at a touchingly wonderful ceremony which is a part of the annual Kala Raksha Convocation Mela.
The district of Kutch is going to be replete with a series of events, festivals, happenings; all to showcase an amalgamation of a larger celebration of the arts, crafts and culture of Kutch. Legendary, heroism and romance lend enchantment to Kutch a land of great antiquity forming the Northwestern part of Gujarat. Every year a grand festival to celebrate the uniqueness of this land is held in December and called the Rann Utsav which takes place through the length and breadth of Kutch and is partaken by a colorful variety of festivities.
While the arts and culture are being showcased through platforms of their own, along with traditional, religious and ritualistic festivals also happening all over the state; the business and industrial side of Gujarat is not relegated to a corner but is also eulogized through Trade Fairs, seminars, exhibitions, and expositions so that people get a chance to interact with new products and industries and management get an introduction to Gujarat. One such happening fair in the coming week is the Engineering Expo, Ahmedabad!
There was a time when even the simplest of cuisines, the ubiquitous ‘ gol gappa’ achieved the status of a gourmet item with a variety of flavors, condiments, sauces and the underlying connectivity between the basic ingredients. ‘Gol gappa’, patasha’, ‘puchka’, ‘pani puri’, so many names to tantalize the taste buds and so much a part of this country’s heritage that an entire mela developed around it in Ahmedabad. The area just outside sarangpur gate used to became a conglomerate of galas, larries, rekdis and ever so many people sampling the joys of the puri with flavored water trickling down lip smacking chins. A wonderfully novel way of welcoming dev Diwali, the legendary celebration of Lord Vishnu’s return to Vaikunth.
‘Symbolically smashing the head of the hard/puffed puri, stuffing it with the spoils of battle and eating it with a flourish’. That is one of the morbid explanations hovering around a festival dedicated to the celebration of food, which the average Ahmedabadi seems so enamored about.
This is just a meandering path down certain well known fairs and melas. Every village, every community has their own variations of festivals, most so localized that they have never flowered beyond their village set up, replete with localized rituals and sustained year after year by the local community owing allegiance to their own aspect of music, ritual, dance, color, and form. Most community rural festivals honor an aspect of the mother goddess pertinent to that particular community, its needs, requirements and geographical conditions.
Amongst melas which preserves the old while bringing in a new flavor, are urban creations of college festivals; events organized by quasi government organizations consisting of theater, dance, cuisine and the like. A similar rural design festival in its third successful year of existence is the convocation mela organized by the Kala Raksha Vidyalaya in Tunda Vandh Village; the nearest town to what once was once a patch of pristine beauty and splendor is Mandvi in Kutch. Kala Raksha Vidyalaya is a design educational institute meant for Traditional Artisans. . The vision of the Vidyalaya is to develop a new approach to design education based on existing textile traditions. One important activity is to discover, articulate and utilize the existing systems of knowledge, skills, design and innovation to working traditional artisans. The focus of the institute is on acquiring knowledge and skills that will enable artisans to use design effectively in order to successfully reach appropriate new markets, while at the same time strengthening traditional identity and instilling a sense of pride in their heritage. The design school is a unique one of its kind set up with ut most care and sensitivity. This December the third batch of artisan students will graduate at a touchingly wonderful ceremony which is a part of the annual Kala Raksha Convocation Mela.
The district of Kutch is going to be replete with a series of events, festivals, happenings; all to showcase an amalgamation of a larger celebration of the arts, crafts and culture of Kutch. Legendary, heroism and romance lend enchantment to Kutch a land of great antiquity forming the Northwestern part of Gujarat. Every year a grand festival to celebrate the uniqueness of this land is held in December and called the Rann Utsav which takes place through the length and breadth of Kutch and is partaken by a colorful variety of festivities.
While the arts and culture are being showcased through platforms of their own, along with traditional, religious and ritualistic festivals also happening all over the state; the business and industrial side of Gujarat is not relegated to a corner but is also eulogized through Trade Fairs, seminars, exhibitions, and expositions so that people get a chance to interact with new products and industries and management get an introduction to Gujarat. One such happening fair in the coming week is the Engineering Expo, Ahmedabad!
Published:Ahmedabad Mirror
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