Punjabi Festivals

 Punjabi Festivals

Fairs or Melas in Punjabi are synonymous with the joy and gaiety; and in the countryside where the life follows a hard routine, nothing is more welcome to the people than the prospect of a festival or a mela. A rural mela in Punjab has a great significance. It is not just an occasion for festivity and mass gathering but it is an unbounded expression of the spirit of the inner freedom, of creative pride, of zest for life, and of colorful traditions of the people of Punjab. People come to participate in fairs from far-off places, trudging dusty distances. Most of the fairs are held in memory of a saint or a pir, and people from all communities living in a village participate in it. Men women and children of all ages, classes and creeds flock in hundreds and enjoy the numerous fascinating features of the fair; races, wrestling bouts, singing, acrobatics, etc. They play on folk instruments, such as vanjli and algoza.

A fair is enchantingly picturesque. A bustling market springs up in which articles of food and products of local handicrafts-toys, glass bangles, and an assortment of all kinds of articles for domestic use are on display. There is fun and frolic all round. The gay ones in small groups sing boli’s and perform folk-dances to the strain of the vanjli and algoza. The sturdy ones test their strength in wrestling fields. It is a feast of color and gaiety and fully reflects the joy of the community. The fairs of the Punjab are linked with its culture and reflect by and large the various phases of its life. Distinct Punjabi traits are depicted in them.