Photos - The Dungri Mela

Not long after we arrived in Vashisht the annual 3 day Dungrie Mela took place. It is a huge festival in the village of Dungri about 5kms away from here, across on the other side of the river. It is normally a very quiet traditional village and doesn't have many guest houses or eateries for tourists but, when the festival is taking place, it is jammed packed. People come from neighbouring villages and towns, some several hours away by bus. The already narrow streets are made even narrower by many street sellers punting their wares and even worse by the thousands of people elbowing and shoving their way around to get a look at what catches their eye (elbowing, pushing and shoving people in front, behind and beside you, and sometimes quite forcefully, is the norm in many pasts of India. It's something I still can't get used to,  having to retaliate in the same manner, which is probably why it takes me ages to get served in a shop. Colin, as you can imagine, has no problem fitting in with this custom and isn't even aware when he's doing it). 

The goods for sale are mainly aimed at the domestic and social needs of local people although there some stalls that sell tourist items for both Indian and Overseas tourists. As with any Indian festival there loads of stalls cooking food and the range of smells is mouth-watering. There is a fun-fare for the children, although I think there was more adults than children were enjoying themselves on the rides! Also, very important, is the Spiritual/Holy celebrations as the Gods from all the neighbouring villages are brought to the festival for worship and celebration.

The festival was an ideal timing for Colin and I as we had not long arrived in Vashisht, hadn't yet bought any Royal Doulton kitchen ware  and had been using Champa's cutlery, crockery etc. We managed to buy everything we needed for the kitchen (crockery, cutlery, pots, utensils etc. - the whole lot for under a tenner) even though we didn't manage to find the Royal Doulton stall! 

I was really glad I didn't have to buy any underwear though as some of the stuff is - I can't really think of a word for it but you certainly wouldn't find it in Marks and Spenser's or La Senza! When buying a bra you kind of have to look down at the size of your boobs and then look at the size-less bras on offer to see what you think might fit. The bras are often 2 kinda thin, cotton saggy triangles sewn together and fastened at the back. The knickers are a bargain though as, if you buy a pair, it would seem that you don't have to spend the money buying a bra as the knickers are a tad large and seem to do the job of both. Will need some knew undies soon though, so gone will be the days of matching nice silky underwear. It was a great day though and, after all, we did end up with a fully-equipped kitchen!

This guy is selling freshly-made jelabis. Not the healthiest food for the heart but really yummy, although Colin begs to differ. They are mainly made from flour and sugar and are deep fried until the batter is crispy. They are sweet, sticky and oily, but as I said, yummy - although they may not sound like it - and would probably compete well with a deep-fried mars-bar, not that I've ever tried one. We ate a few at the festival and then that evening Pritam brought home a big bag of them for Colin and I to eat. Although yummy, 1 or 2 is enough in any given month, probably again like a deep-fried mars-bar. But, being from Scottish culture where to refuse may seem impolite, we managed to munch through a few more until we felt sick like kids eating too many sweets at Xmas.

 A much healthier option is the freshly barbecued corn on the cob.

Gathering in the grounds of Hadimba Temple in Dungri to worship and celebrate the Gods. It is a happy charged atmosphere filled with singing and dancing. This picture makes it look as if there were no women present, only men, but this isn't the case. The women were mainly all at the other side. It's not that women and men don't mingle at these times or that there are separate areas for women, as in some cultures, it is more a case of the festival being a social event and the women gravitating to one another, chatting and catching up.

There are 2 Gods in this photo resting side-by-side. Each of the Gods has 2 wooden poles at their base which continue through the back of them and are used for people to carry the Gods at shoulder height. Every town and village has it's own God and all these Gods form the one religion. Each God has 2-3 powers and, at the festival when many gods are present at once, it is an important time of celebration and worship. As a festival draws near each town and village take their God from their Temple and transport it to the gathering. This involves the men of the village, using the wooden poles at the base of the God and carrying the God on their shoulders, sometimes walking for 2-3 days up-hill or down-hill to reach their destination. Not all Gods go to every festival but later in the year is the last annual festival of the year. This is  in the town of Kullu and all the Gods go there and it is a massive festival.