Bikaner Camel Festival, Rajasthan, India
Posted by Jackie Hewett on Wed 16th January 2008 at 02:58 AM, Filed in India, January
Bikaner is set in the heart of the dessert and before the advent of modern transport replied heavily on camels. In fact the Bikaner army even had an elite camel corps called the Ganga Risala who played an active part in both world wars and Indo-Pak wars. Even today, Bikaner has the only Camel breeding centre in India.
The annual camel festival is always in January, and in 2008 it takes place on the 21st and 22nd. The event is organised by Rajasthan’s Department of Tourism, Art and Culture specifically to (very successfully) attract tourists who attend in their hundreds. The festival opens with a procession of camels decked out in their ‘Sunday best’ against a backdrop of the Junagarh Fort. The procession finishes at some open sand grounds (also used a polo grounds) where most of the festival events take place.
There are camel beauty pageants where the camel owners show off the camel’s jewellery (from necklaces to anklets – yes, really!), ‘hairdo’s’ and other adornments. You will be able to see Camel races (mainly on the second day), camels dancing with unexpected grace, camel milking, and of course take your own bone shaking camel ride. Part of the Bikaner festival experience is trying festival tea and sweets made with camel milk.
In the evenings you will be able to see traditional Rajasthan swirling folk and fire dances with a large firework display on the second evening. Weather-wise January is a great time to go, it’s winter so the days aren’t too hot, but jumper or jacket is advisable for the evenings.
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