One of the most important festivals of Rajasthan,
Gangaur Festival is celebrated a fortnight after Holi for 18 days. A festival for girls of marriageable age and married women, Gangaur is said to bring marital bliss and harmony in the household. It is believed that observing the fasts during Gangaur ensures that a girl will get married to a husband of her desire and choice. The worshipped deity of the festival is Gauri or Goddess Parvati, the consort of Lord Shiva who performed mediation for several years in an effort to win over the heart of her beloved. Women adorn idols of Gauri with beautiful clothes and fake jewelry and make offerings to her to seek her blessings of long lives for their husbands.
An unusual custom in some of the local tribes of Rajasthan is that during Gangaur, men and women of age can meet without any inhibitions, select their partners and elope to marry. Their inebriated state perhaps facilitates them to overcome their hesitation. At other places, women have only one meal a day during the 18-days long festival. At Bikaner, women prepare sweets at home and make an offering to the goddess near a well and then, distribute them while returning to home. Ghewar, a sweet dish, is the traditional sweet offering at Jaipur during Gangaur.
Thousands of women wearing yellow clothes carrying beautifully ornamented earthen pots and elaborate palanquins take out colorful processions across several cities of Rajasthan, especially
Jaipur,
Udaipur,
Jaisalmer,
Bikaner,
Jodhpur and Marathwara. Horses and band add to the beauty of these processions. The Gangaur procession starts at the Palace Gate called Tripolia in Jaipur, passing through city streets via Chaugan to Talkatora. It is one of the most famous points to see lively Gangaur procession. The boat pageant on Lake Pichola, where women carry several sparkling new brass pots on their heads at once, presents one of the finest spectacles of the festival. Fireworks mark the end of ceremony at Udaipur.
Several villagers and tourists gather at Jaipur and Udaipur to see illustrious Gangaur celebrations at Udaipur. A Jodhpur, the lotias fair is one if its distinctive features. Thousands of maidens dress in their best attire and carry water and grass in silver or brass spots to Girdikot, singing traditional songs. The procession continues for seven days at Nathdwara and each day, a different color is chosen for the dress of the Goddess and all idols are dressed in a similar fashion. On the last day, the main idol of Gauri is adorned in a black dress with golden lace.
