Poush Mela-the festival at Shantiniketan in West Bengal

This article is on Poush Mela at Shantiniketan. You will get information about the history of this mela, how this mela was started and the concept behind this mela.

Poush Mela is one of the most famous fair in West Bengal. It is celebrated at  Shantiniketan in Birbhum  district. Poush mela continues for three days and in every year it start on the 7th day of Bengali calendar month Poush. With the start of winter, Bengalis feel an un-resistible attraction of Shantiniketan due this Poush mela. People from different parts of the country, even from other countries come to Shantiniketan for Poush mela. People of different race, religion and culture gather at Shantiniketan on the occasion of Poush Mela. In Bengali, mela means get together of huge number of people with different location, culture, religion, race. Shantiniketan Poush melais a mela in true sense.

Origin of the Poush Mela

In the earlier days, Shantiniketan was a small remote village in Birbhum. Initially Shantiniketan was known as Bhubandanga.  Maharshi Debendranath Tagore, father of Rabindranath Tagore found this place in 1860. He was charmed with the calm and quite surrounding of Bhubandanga. Actually at that time he was in search of a location where people of all religions can seat together for prayer and meditation. He found Bhubandanga the most suitable location and purchased the place. Later the name was changed to Shantiniketan.  On 21 December 1843 (7 Poush 1250), Debendranath Tagore and 20 followers accepted Brahmo creed and a Brahmo mandir was established on 21 December 1891 at Shantiniketan. That day was also 7 Poush. On 1894, a small fair was organised on the occasion of establishment anniversary of Brahmo mandir. The date was 7 Poush as per Bengali calendar.   In 1888, Shantiniketan trust deed was done and at that time a provision was made for the mela. In 1901, Rabindranath Tagore started an open air school at Shantiniketan. The concept behind the school was ancient Gurukul system of education. The school was  started on the 7th day of Poush.

Inauguration function of Poush Mela

Like any other festivals at Shantiniketan, Poush mela inauguration function is also unique and immutable. In the early morning of 7 Poush, Shantiniketan wakes up with the music of Shehnai. The Vaitalik group start performing. The group goes round the ashrama singing Rabindra Sangeet. After that a prayer is held at famous Chhatimtala. From Chhatimtala the next destination is Uttarayan. All present at Chhatimtala move to Uttarayan singing songs of Gurudeb.

The rest of the days in Poush Mela are decorated with cultural activities of West Bengal. Live performances of Rabindra Sangeet, baul, Bengali folk music, dances, tribal sports and presentation of Shantiniketan present students are the main attraction of this Poush mela.

Poush Mela 2024

Dates: December 24 – December 26, 2024

Location: Poush Mela Ground, Shantiniketan, Birbhum District, West Bengal

Inauguration: The fair will officially commence on December 24, with traditional rituals including the soft music of shehnai and performances by the Vaitalik group.

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List Of Major Fairs And Festivals In West Bengal

 

Fair Name	Location	Time of Year	Significance
Kolkata Book Fair	Kolkata	January-February	Largest book fair in India
Poush Mela	Shantiniketan	December	Celebrates Bengali culture and arts
Gangasagar Mela	Sagar Island	January	Religious fair, marks the occasion of Makar Sankranti
Kenduli Mela	Kenduli	January	Celebrated in the honor of poet Jaydev
Digha Beach Festival	Digha	Winter months	Promotes tourism and local culture
Teesta Tea & Tourism Fest	Siliguri	November-December	Promotes tea industry and tourism in North Bengal
Jalpaiguri Tea Festival	Jalpaiguri	Winter months	Showcases the rich tea culture of the region
Haldia Mela	Haldia	January-February	Cultural fair with exhibitions and performances
Vasant Utsav	Shantiniketan	Spring (February)	Marks the arrival of spring, cultural performances
Naba Barsho Fair	Various Locations	April	Celebrates Bengali New Year

Details Coming Soon.....

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Bishnupur Mela and Bishnupur Utsav in Bankura district of West Bengal

Want to know when Bishnupur Mela and Bishnupur Utsav starts every year ? Are you looking for main features of the mela. From this article you will get detail information about Bishnupur Mela and Bishnupur Utsav.

Bishnupur mela is a famous mela or fair of Bankura district. The fair is held in the last week of December every year. Location of this fair is near the Madanmohana Temple. The sub-division administration of Bishnupur with the help of Bankura district administration and Zilla Parishad organises this Bishnupur mela. Normally this mela starts on 23 December and continues upto 27 December.

Main attraction of Bishnupur mela is the exhibition and sale of handicrafts. Artisans and small traders of local areas as well as from other locations come to this mela with their products which are mainly handicrafts- sea-shell works, terracotta works and many more items. Thousands of people come from different locations.

A recent addition to the Bishnupur mela is the Bishnupur Utsav. Since 2008 Bishnupur Utsav is held in last two days of the Bishnupur mela. It is a classical music and dance festival of ‘Bishnupur Gharana’. The most interesting feature of this Bishnupur Utsav is that like Konark or Khajuraha festivel, this utsav is organised keeping the Raj Moncho of Bishnupur at background.

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Rash Mela in Cooch Behar of West Bengal

This article holds the information related to Rash Mela like what is Rash Mela, what are the main attractions of Rash Mela, when it starts and many more.

Rash Mela, the colourful festival is celebrated in the district of Cooch Behar. The Mela continues for a month and is considered as the most important fair in Cooch Behar. In ancient days, Rash Mela was celebrated in royal families but now-a-days it is celebrated by all.

What is Rash Mela

Rash Mela is celebrated in the honour of Lord Krishna and Sri Radhika. Rash is mainly celebrated in northern districts of West Bengal although in recent times it is observed that it is being celebrated in many other places of the state. Rash yatra is the main attraction of Rash Mela. Rash yatra is a precession with clay deities of Lord Krishna and Sri Radhika which demonstrate various acts of Lord Krishna in   different stage of his life.

Nowadays the festival has taken the form of communal celebrations while in older days was only limited to royal families.

Main attractions of Rash Mela

During Rash Mela, the palace of Cooch Behar is decorated beautifully. Many tourists from different parts of West Bengal come to Cooch Behar during the Rash Mela. Apart from food stalls, cultural programs are organised during this Mela. Many local artists and renowned artists from Kolkata and other parts of the state perform in Rash Mela.

Rash Mela is celebrated during the month of December every year.

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Kalpataru Utsav at Dakshineswar in West Bengal

What is Kalpataru Utsav and when the religious festival is celebrated are posted in this article.

Kalpataru Utsav is an annual religious festival observed by monks of the Ramakrishna Mission on 1st January every year.

History behind the Kalpataru Utsav

In Indian myth, Kalpataru is a magical tree which fulfills the desires of a person.  On January 1 of 1886 Sri Ramakrishna revealed his original form before his disciples. At that time Sri Ramakrishna was suffering from throat cancer and was staying at the garden house in Cossipore. On January 1 of 1886 the disciples of Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa Dev were in the garden where Sri Ramakrishna was staying. It was afternoon and on that auspicious day Sri Ramakrishna Dev came out his room to meet his disciples. Sri Ramakrishna Dev asked Girish Ghosh what he thinks about Sri Ramakrishna Dev. Girish Ghosh was a follower of Sri Ramakrishna Dev and his answer was "God incarnate, come to Earth out of mercy for humankind". In response of Girish Ghosh’s answer, Sri Ramakrishna answered the affirmative. After that Sri Ramakrishna passed to the trance stage and his disciples one after the other began taking his blessings. Sri Ramakrishna touched everyone and they felt a new state of consciousness. By touching his disciples, Sri Ramakrishna granted them the sight of enlightenment. Disciples and followers of Sri Ramakrishna Dev describe this incident as transformation of Sri Ramakrishna Dev into Kalpataru. Most interesting is that Sri Ramakrishna Dev died on 16 August, 1886, eight and half month after his transformation into Kalpataru. Some believes that Sri Ramakrishna Dev prepared his disciples before his death through the incidence of 1 January 1886..

Kalpataru festival is considered as an auspicious day for all devotees of Sri Ramakrishna Dev. Every year on 1st January, people from different parts of the state come to Dakshineswar.

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Kenduli Mela in Birbhum district of West Bengal

Kenduli Mela is one of the famous rural fair in West Bengal. This is a festival of bouls. Read this article to know about the mela.

Few words about the Kenduli mela

Bengal is a place where innumerable number of fairs and festivals take place. One of the most famous festivals Kenduli Mela is well known as a festival of Bauls. It attracts the tourists from different parts of the world. It is celebrated on the occasion of Makar Sankranti. The Birbhum district in West Bengal is known as the home to many Bauls. The festival offers oppurtunities to the Bauls to perform music at their best. On this occasion the Bauls are dressed in saffron attire, plays musical instrument ‘ektara’ and sings songs on life’s philosophy.

Location and Date of Kenduli mela

Kenduli Mela is held in the month of January at Kenduli, Birdhum District in West Bengal for three days. The mela is held from 14^thto 16^th January with Makar Sankranti which pulls crowd from all over the world.

How to reach

One can reach the mela through Panagarh-Morgram Highway, turning left a little after Ilambazar.

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