My Sirpur Experience

I was in Gangtok when I received an invite to the Sirpur Music and Dance Festival from the Chhattisgarh Tourism Board. I wasn’t sure if I would be able to go, but asked for some time, so I could get back to Mumbai and check if I could manage to get away for the three days. Eventually, things worked out, and I set off, happy to be visiting a new state, wondering what the experience would be like.

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Sirpur - Heritage Unearthed

Long, long ago, there was a city on the banks of a river. The builders planned it well. They built on the right side of the river, allowing for the natural slopes, which ensured that when the river swelled during the monsoons, the extra flow would be to its left, leaving the city dry. The main walls of the town were built in a direction along the river, so that in case there ever was a flood, it would do the least damage. They built massive temples for their deities, towering over the city, so everyone could see the spires, and hear the bells from their houses.

Surang Tila

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Mahant Ghasidas Sangrahalaya - The Raipur Museum

“Sangrahalaya? Woh kya hota hai?” (“Museum, whats that?”) asked a bewildered gentleman, when I asked him directions to the museum at Raipur. 

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Faces in the Crowd - the girl drawing a rangoli

It has been a long time since I posted anything in this series, so reviving it with this pic from the Sirpur Village.

We were wandering around Sirpur village, when I noticed her. I am always drawn towards Rangoli, and hers was the only one in the village! When I asked, she said that they rarely drew Rangolis, unless it was a festival. "Why now?" I asked, and she replied "Because we cleaned our front porch and I felt like!"

P.S. I recently visited Sirpur to attend the Music and Dance Festival on invitation from Chhattisgarh Tourism. Read my other posts on the trip for more details and information,

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Skywatch Friday - Sunset at Sirpur

It's been a while since I have posted anything for Skywatch Friday, so here is something from my most recent trip, to Sirpur, in Chhattisgarh. We were walking over the remnants of one of the oldest marketplaces in the world, when the sun began to go down. We had to cut short our exploration of the other ancient monuments of Sirpur, and head back. The light was already failing, and I was ready to put my camera inside... and then I glimpsed this... the sun setting over one of the many temples in Sirpur...

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Sirpur Music and Dance Festival 2015

Music, they say, is a feast for the soul. When music and dance come together across genres, language and region, that too in a place steeped in history, the result is something even greater – a feeling I can only describe as Divine! I had an opportunity to experience such bliss at the recently concluded Sirpur Music and Dance Festival, thanks to an invite from the Chhattisgarh Tourism Board.

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A Sculpture like none other!

He is over 8 feet tall, and simply seems to take up all the space! We were, to be honest, rather startled, when we first set eyes on him. The reason though, was not his size, but the fact that he seemed to be made up of faces! Wondering what I am talking about? Here, let me show you….

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