Type Tribal Festival Time 1 Day In February/ March Location Alirajpur, Jhabua And Shahdol, Madhya Pradesh
Elopement may be frowned upon in general, but at a place you would least expect, it is not just accepted, but celebrated. In Madhya Pradesh’s three tribal districts of Alirajpur, Jhabua and Shahdol, the community gives ‘love birds’ the perfect opportunity to run off into the sunset, quite literally.
Just before Holi, the festival of colours, the districts host a tribal festival called Bhagoria. Apart from having all the trappings of a colourful and kitschy village fair, the festival serves as a matromonial platform, for couples who have been seeing each other, secretly or otherwise.
The way it works is like this: A young man smears gulal (shocking pink colour) on his love interest. That is his way of proposing. If, by the end of the fair, she also applies gulal on him, it’s a sign of her acceptance. Sometimes, instead of gulal, the boy offers the girl a paan (betel leaf filled with sweeteners and spices), a digestif taken after meals. If the girl also offers a paan to the boy, the deal is sealed. They then go to the boy’s house, or his relative’s or a friend’s, and get married around Holi with the respective families’ approval.
The Festival
What a sight it is to visit one of these fairs! The men wear the flashiest clothes possible, all psychedelic prints and gaudy colours, with blingy sun-glasses to boot. Girls from one village usually wear identical saris or ghagra cholis in order to be easily identifiable amongst all the groups in the busy fair. So, you might see a swarm of 15–20 girls, all dressed in red, or another group strutting about in green. For photographers wanting to capture Indian exotica, this is gold.
I visited a couple of such fairs at Sondwa and Valpur, part of a small contingent of journalists invited by the Madhya Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation to showcase this festival. Our very basic campsite at Sondwa village was in the middle of a rugged and barren landscape. After the privileges of urban life, this rustic set-up felt constricting and liberating all at once.
While Alirajpur is only 240km from Indore, they seem worlds apart. Fairs in villages close to the city have got a touch of modernity, while those in the hinterland have retained their authenticity. Close to the city, young boys and girls wear jeans and salwar kameez respectively, unlike their counterparts in the villages where the traditional colour co-ordinated lehenga choli and silver tribal jewellery still rule.
The fairs are an important event in the lives of villagers as they provide a much-needed break from the dreary routine of their everyday lives. Most menfolk are either farmhands or work as labourers in Gujarat. They all come to the grand fair to rejuvenate and reconnect. The villagers arrive in droves. Jeeps and buses laden with passengers, with many perched on the roof or dangling precariously from moving vehicles, are common sights on the roads leading to villages where the haats are held.
Business booms at the fairs. Saris, dress material and gorgeous silver jewellery with tribal motifs are all sold here. As are utensils, toys, footwear and glass bangles. Ferris wheels turn creakily, the young maidens sitting on them betraying a mix of dread and glee. At a few places, performers walking across tightropes draw crowds.
A motorcyclist riding along the inner walls of a wooden well thrills onlookers, who climb on to a temporary wooden platform and peer into the shaft. Several girls line up before the local bangle seller and tattoo artist. In a corner somewhere, a kadhai of hot oil froths as mirchi bhajjiyas (green chilli fritters) fry to crunchy perfection, accompanied by jalebis (sweetmeat). Equally relished is the Kadaknath variety of chicken, that is black from head to toe, and is the speciality of Jhabua District.
The atmosphere is festive and raucous, aided in no small part by toddy. On the day of the fair, there’s no such thing as ‘too early’ to have a swig or two of the potent brew that is tapped from palm trees. One sees young men with ghungroos (bells) around their feet and waists, high on toddy, dancing to the beat of drums and flutes. As men enter the fair, they keep joining the group for a round of dancing. For someone from the city, the allure of watching the villagers’ high point of the year is special. There is something bewitching about the simplicity and purity of it all—the fresh faces and the radiant smiles; rides on the jhula and haggling over a trinket’s price.
As the Bhagoria fair winds down and the crowds dissipate, the fair ground goes quiet, as though patiently waiting for the following year.
Things to See & Do
Indore, the state capital, has several places of interest such as the grand Rajwada Palace and Central Museum. The town of Maheshwar lies 148km away from Alirajpur. It is home to the massive Maheshwar Fort. The town is also famous for its saris. The clatter of handlooms is common throughout the bylanes of the town. There are several little shops where you can buy cotton and silk creations. Mandu,130km away, is a treasure trove of magnificent ruins such as Jahaz Mahal, Roopmati’s Pavilion and Baz Bahadur’s Palace.
Where to Stay and eat
In Alirajpur, MP Tourism puts up tents (Indore Tel: 0731-2499566; Tariff: ₹5,000–6,000, with meals) during the festival. The tents are air-cooled and come with attached baths and toilets. The campsite has a dining area where meals are served. In Jhabua, MP Tourism has a Tourist Motel (Tel: 07392-244668, Cell: 09424796829; Tariff: ₹2,290–2,990) with 12 rooms, a restaurant and bar.
For local specialties, there are plenty of small eateries in the towns.
Fast Facts
Tourist Office: MPSTDC, 42, Residency Area, Opp Saint Paul High School, Indore. Tel: 0731-2499566/ 466
STD code 0731
Getting There
Air Nearest airport: Indore’s Ahilyabai Holkar Airport is 250km from Alirajpur. Jhabua, also part of the festivities, is 80km from Alirajpur. Taxis in Indore can be arranged via MP Tourism (Tel: 0731-2499466) at ₹9–14 per km
Rail Meghnagar Railway Station is 18km from Jhabua, and falls on the Delhi-Mumbai line. It is served by the Golden Temple Mail, which leaves Mumbai Central for Amritsar via Vadodra and Delhi. Other options are Avantika Express (from Indore), Mumbai-Jaipur SF Express and Mumbai-Firozpur. Taxi to Jhabua is ₹400–500. Alirajpur is about 100km from the station
Road Jhabua falls on the Indore-Ahmedabad NH59 and is 150km from Indore via Ujjain. Taxis can be hired at ₹9–14 per km. Rates need to be negotiated for duration of stay as the festival is spread across many villages in the district. Vadodara is 150km from Alirajpur. Roads are broad, smooth and offer a pleasant ride. MP Tourism offers package tours during the festival, which includes transport and accommodation Bus There are plenty of direct buses throughout the day between Indore and Alirajpur