Festivals Celebrated in Chhattisgarh with an Unparalleled Zest
Chhattisgarh, one of the delightful and large-hearted state of our country. People from here are known mostly for their credulity, innocence and simplicity. The love and affection shown by the local people from here are just astounding, as per my experience, since I was living here from 19 years. The local festivals we celebrate in the different regions of Chhattisgarh are just unimaginable. What if I tell you that there are some festivals which are even celebrated for months? Sounds quite crazy. Isn’t it? Festivals celebrated here are truly based on the traditions and past. Let’s discuss about a few of them in brief:
· Bhoramdeo Festival
One of the ancient festivals, Bhodramdeo Festival was firstly organized by Maharaja Ramchandra Deo, who was from Nagavanshi dynasty. Also, in 1349, he put the foundation of the Bhoramdeo Temple. This festival begins during the end period of March. At that time, a huge number of folk artists from their native regions gathered together to celebrate it.
· Fagun Wadai
This festival, Fagun Wadai, usually begins about a week before the national festival Holi, while it ends after few days of Holi. This festival is totally the mixture of various tribal tales and their individual folks.
· Bastar Lokotsav
Bastar Lokotsav, celebrated at the end of rainy days, purely represents the folk culture of all the regions of our state, with great participation from tribal groups. This festival consists of the dedicated involvement of handicrafts and tribal arts from different venues.
· Madai Festival
Every year, from December to March, Madai Festival is celebrated by the tribal communities of Dantewada, Bastar and Kanker districts. It is celebrated in a large gathering, with the procession of local supereme beings, followed by their customs and meals.
· Bastar Dussera
This is one of the most special festival celebrated in Chhattisgarh, which is celebrated in the span of 70-72 days. Bastar Dussera, devoted to the foremost and reverted goddess of the tribes of Chhattisgarh. Unlike the other dussera, which is celebrated in the whole nation for the victory of Lord Rama over the king of demons Ravana.
· Chhattisgarh Foundation Day
Chhattisgarh Foundation Day, the day almost every one, including offices, colleges and schools celebrate. It is celebrated on 1st of November every year. As per the consent of President of India towards the Madhya Pradesh government, through MP Reorganization Act 2000 on the day of 25th of August. As per the agreement of both the sides, on 1st November 2000, Madhya Pradesh gets divided separately into Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. As my personal experience during school days, this festival really feels like Independence Day or Republic Day. In addition, the State Government organizes the Raj Utsav Mela every year (expect previous year due to COVID-19), which is of the span of 7-10 days every year for the celebration. The Handicrafts, traditional arts and various cultural programs from all regions of the state gather together to be a part of this.
· Chhattisgarhi Language Day
On the day of 28th November, 2007,Vidhan Sabha permitted Chhattisgarhi language as the main language of Chhattisgarh. Since then, every year, 28th of November is known for Chhattisgarhi Language Day. Many of the schools conduct different types of activities and competitions regarding this day, to promote this language.
· Narayanpur Mela
Narayanpur Mela, as the name suggests, a form of fair, which is organized in the month of February. This festival is organized in such a way that the participants i.e., the tribal families, can celebrate and worship their deities at time. This festival is also a great example of the worshipping culture and faith in gods of the people of Chhattisgarh.
These were some of the festivals celebrated in Chhattisgarh, with an unparalleled zest compared to the country. There are many more festivals which are celebrated in Chhattisgarh but people from this state (applicable for me also), doesn’t even care about them. The festivals I mentioned above are truly based on their religion and beliefs. The thing really hurts to me the most is, we are blindly following some of the rubbish trends (such as Valentine’s day/week or Friendship day), which seriously didn’t gonna add any values in our life. Not just only in this state, this is happening in almost all over the country. Instead of just blindly following the Western Culture, we just need to pay little attention to our own culture, it will really make your life better.