Fairs & Festivals of India 2011

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On February first week at Parthasarathy temple, Adoor, (near KSRTC bus stand, Adoor), Pathanamthitta district the event Adoor Gajamela takes place.

Gajamela or the elephant pageant on the concluding day is the highlight of the 10-day annual festival at the Sree Parthasarathy Temple. The temple is dedicated to Lord Sree Krishna, known here in the name of Parthasarathy (Partha's charioteer; Partha (Arjuna) was one of the five Pandava princes, the heroes of the epic, Mahabharatha). Majestically caparisoned elephants take part in this spectacular procession.

Getting there:
Nearest railway station: Chengannur, about 25 km away.
Nearest airport: Thiruvananthapuram International Airport, about 92 km away

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Theyyam, the colourful ritual dance of Kerala is one of the oldest art forms of India. It incorporates dance, mime and music and enshrines the rudiments of ancient tribal cultures, which attached great importance to the worship of heroes and ancestral spirits.

Venue: Perumthitta Tharavad, Kottamkuzhy, Kasaragod District.

Event Date: From Dec 6 to Dec 15, 2010

Perumthitta Theyyam festival at which most of the Theyyam forms are on display is truly a grand affair. The pomp and splendour of the Theyyams are bewitching and help keep alive this age-old tradition.

Getting there:
By road: Bekal-Palakunnu-Mudiyakkal-Chandrapuram-Perumthatta.
Nearest railway station: Kasaragod, about 26 km away.
Nearest airport: Mangalore, in the neighbouring state of Karnataka, about 50 km away from Kasaragod.

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The annual festival at the Sree Ruthira Mahakaalikavu Temple, dedicated to Goddess Kali, is the most famous event in the region and is called the Uthralikavu Pooram. The eight-day celebration is highlighted by day-and-night elephant processions. The concluding day of the festival is celebrated as pooram day, when about 21 elephants in traditional caparisons line up with colourful parasols, swaying venchamarams (white tufts like those used for cheerleading) and Aalavattams (peacock-feather fans). Traditional musical ensembles like the Panchavadyam and the Pandimelam add rhythm to this magical spectacle. The cultural fare during the festival includes temple and folk art performances.

Venue: Sree Ruthira Mahakalikavu Temple near Vadakkancherry, Thrissur district.

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The fairs and festivals either celebrate the change of seasons or are of a religious nature. For instance, Mewar Festival and Holi are celebrated to mark the coming of the spring season. Teej of Rajasthan marks the onset of the monsoon. On the other hand, Onam in Kerala and Bihu in Assam are celebrated to mark the harvesting season. Other festivals, like the konark Dance Festival, promote the culture of India. Religious festivals are innumerable over here. Durga Puja, Ganesh Chaturthi, Janmastami, Christmas, Eid-ul-Fitr, Rath Yatra, Vasant Panchami, Ram Nabami and others are some of the popular religious festivals of India. Apart from these, the other festivals that are celebrated include Desert Festival, Elephant Festival, Raksha Bandhan, Nouroz, Diwali and Dusssehra amongst others.
A large number of fairs are also held in India from time to time. People from far and wide come to take part in these fairs. In fact, many tourists plan their vacations according to the time of occurrence of these fairs. Pushkar Fair, Urs Ajmer Fair and Surajkund Crafts Fair are some of the famous fairs of India. The Kumbh Mela and the colorful and grand Goa Carnival are extremely popular among the locals as well as the tourists.

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The most popular festivals of the Madurai Meenakshi temple are Chitra festival (12 days, Chithirai), Avani-moola festival, Masi Mandala festival (48 days), Float festival (12 days, Thai), and Navarathri cultural festival (Purattasi).



Karthigai deepam is celebrated with one lakh lamps in the temple.

During the 12 months of the Tamil calendar year, every month there is a festival in the temple.

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Agasthyakoodam trekking

One of the difficult treks in Kerala, due to it's height of 1890 m and the 28 km (one way) trek from Bonekkad roadhead in the Sahyadri hill ranges (2 days).

Location : Bonekkad, 61 km from Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala. The route is via Nedumangad, Vithura. There is a statue of Sage Agastya, a disciple of Shiva, on top of the Agastya hills.



Season : Jan 15 to Feb 15, 2011.

Entry fee : Rs 200 per person. For those who are interested to trek with guide from Dec to April has to pay Rs 3000 (for a group of 5 persons) + Rs 75 per person towards packed food.

Contact Address for Entry pass : Wildlife Warden, Agstya vanam biological park, Rajiv Gandhi Nagar, Vattiyurkav.P.O., Thiruvananthapuram - 695 013. Ph : 0471 2236860, 2272182, 2368607.

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Varadarajar temple, Kanchipuram near Chennai is a massive and impressive edifice. The riders on horseback, beautiful figures of Rathi and Manmatha, exquisite temple jewellery are other notable features. This temple provides a glimpse of a 16th century pillared pavilion with an exuberant workmanship.

Dedicated to Lord Vishnu, this temple was built by the Vijaynagar kings and the presiding deity is Devarajaswamy. The 100-pillared hall of this temple proves the mastery of the sculptors of Vijayanagara in fine artists. The ornamental rings carved out of a single stone in a chain at the four corners are the special features of the hall and the figures of the God of Love and his consort astride a swan and a parrot.

The annual Garudothsavam (May - June) is most colourful and draws thousands of devotees.

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Vaikuntam Perumal Temple
This is one of the important Vishnu temples which was built by Pallava King Nandivarman Pallavamalla in the 7th century A.D. Numerous inscriptions are found in this temple relating to the wars between the Pallavas and Challukyas. The presiding deity Lord Vishnu is depicted in sitting, standing and reclining postures.

Kailasanathar Temple
This Pallava temple was constructed in the 8th century and has an attractive panel depicting Shiva and Parvathi in the midst of one of their innumerable dance competitions. The architecture of this temple resembles the Shore Temple at Mamallapuram.

Ekambareswarar
Another ancient temple of Kanchipuram, it has been renovated by the Pallavas, the Cholas and the Vijayanagar Kings. The 57 metres (188") high Rajagopuram is one of the tallest towers in South India. The 2,501 - year old mango tree inside the temple has 4 branches each yielding different varities of mangoes. This temple has five spacious corridors (prakrams) and a beautiful 1,000 - pillar hall.

Kamakshi Amman Temple
This is one of the three holy places of Sakthi worship in India, the others being Madurai and Varanasi. The temple in the present form was built by the Cholas during 14th centuary A.D.

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Thiruthani ( 42 km from Kanchipuram )

Karthigai festival (December) is celebrated with great pomp here.

Vedanthangal bird sanctury ( 48 km from Kanchipuram )

Season : November and February

Sriperumpudhur (29 km from Kanchipuram on the Chennai road)

Rajiv Gandhi memorial