India, being a country of age-old religions, countless temples and shrines and the rituals attached to them is home to thousands of fairs that occupy every season in a calendar year. The sprawling annual festivities of more than 100-year-old Pushkar Mela is one of the biggest events in India. And for a fair in India, it takes to be much more than just average to stand out. The significance of Pushkar Mela is many faceted which are closely intertwined with the unique features of the town of Pushkar. Situated near the famous city of Ajmer in Rajasthan, Pushkar, on the edge of the Thar Desert, is far away from the din and bustle of a modern city.

The Pushkar Fair, also called the Pushkar Camel Fair or locally as Kartik Mela or Pushkar ka Mela is an annual multi-day livestock fair and cultural fête held in the town of Pushkar near Ajmer city in Ajmer district in (Rajasthan, India). The fair starts with the Hindu calendar month of Kartik and ends on the Kartik Purnima, which typically overlaps with late October and early November in the Gregorian calendar. In 1998, over 1 million visitors came to Pushkar throughout the year. The Pushkar fair alone attracts over 200,000 visitors.

The full moon day is the main day and the day, according to legend, when the Hindu god Brahma sprung up the Pushkar Lake, thus numerous people swim in its sacred waters. On record, Pushkar fair is the World’s largest camel fair where around 50,000 camels, horses and cattle and over 400000 people are gathered over a period of around fourteen days. Apart from the buying and selling of livestock, it has become an important tourist attraction also.

The original intention behind the Pushkar Camel Fair was to attract local camel and cattle traders to do business during the holy Kartik Purnima festival. Today the Pushkar Mela creates a stir among travellers with its awe-inspiring celebrations at this grand event cherished with life oozing activities, cultural and musical events, thrilling camel safari tours and a stay in the traditional yet modern camps.

Images of silver bells making heart pleasing jingles, animals walking over sparkling sand dunes and beautifully decked up camels with their owners sitting on their backs have become a fascinating norm at this stunning cultural retreat. A huge carnival is held, with an array of musicians, magicians, dancers, acrobats, snake charmers and carousel rides to entertain the crowd. The grand occasion of the Pushkar Mela is definitely a priceless treat for those who wish to eye the vibrant culture and traditions of Rajasthan.

The entire fair can be segregated under three main heads with a few subheads. The first is the Cattle Fair. Apart from the camels, animals like horses, cows, sheep and goats are being traded here. Further, there are competitions among the colourfully decorated camels where the winner camel is prized healthily. Second, comes the Cultural Fair.

In this segment the stalls and shops catering both to human and the cattle are set up in the fair site. Clothing, jewellery, and tattoos carry an ethnic charm with a typically Rajasthani aura. Besides it, the hugely versatile cultural repertoire of Rajasthan comes alive in Pushkar Fair in the form of folk dance, music, puppet shows and so on. On the final five days of Pushkar fair is for a holy dip in the mythologically significant sacred Pushkar Lake to “wash away the sins of a lifetime” and pay obeisance at the ONLY Brahma temple in the world.