Taj Mahotsav
The
Taj Mahotsav
The annual festival of Taj Mahotsav is held during 18th to 27th of
February every year. The venue is Shilpgram, near Taj Mahal. The
festival is an ode to the rich cultural heritage of Uttar Pradesh.
Lasting for 10 days, the festival is an everlasting experience. The
festival is a continous 10 days celebration, with artists from all
over India showcasing there talent. Taj Mahotsav is one of the
spectacular festival in India and is organized by Uttar Pradesh
Tourism. Spring time is the time of the year when nature dawns all
it's colourful grandeur and Agra bursts into colourful celebrations.
For 10 days there is a sheer celebration of Uttar Pradesh's rich
heritage of arts, crafts, culture, cuisine, dance and music. It is
the time of Taj Mahotsava. There are festivities all around and Agra
truly puts on the colours of joy and gets modified into one non-stop
carnival. It is one of the major attractions for tourists, as it
draws thousands of visitors to Agra from India as well as abroad.
During the festival, Agra and Taj comes to a new life with heaps of
activities. The whole place looks like a mini Uttar Pradesh market.
The Festival Attractions
The Performances
The festival invites best artists from all over India. The folk
artists, musicians, dramatists and other artisans gather at the 10
days celebration and enliven the environment. Throughout the Taj
Mahotsav, one can experience a profusion of folk music and dances of
Bundelkhand, 'Nautanki' (Drama), 'Sapera' dance of Rajasthan, Lavani
of Maharashtra, Kathakali of Kerala and other folk dance.
Shopping
The whole place becomes a small market, where one can get
handicrafts, antiques, woodwork, ivorywork and other speciality
items of Uttar Pradesh. Exquisite crafts like marble inlays, wood
carvings from Saharanpur; brass and other metal-ware from Moradabad;
handmade carpets of Badohi; the blue pottery of Khurja; the Chikan
work of Lucknow; the silk of Banares are exhibited during the Taj
Festival.
Cuisine
A main attraction of Taj Festival is the Food-festival, a gathering
of the chefs and speciality cooks of Uttar Pradesh specialities.
Mughlai cuisine is the main cuisine of the state. It has been
localised by the villages and towns. Some of the major delicacies
are the Mughalai items of Lucknow, Vegetarian delight of Varanasi,
Non vegetarian delights of Lucknow and Agra.Satisfy your taste buds
with the exotic cuisine's and delicacies prepared by some of the
oldest exponents and the typical preparations from the interiors of
Uttar Pradesh at the Food Festival here.
Getting There
Air
Agra is on the popular regular tourist route
Delhi/Agra/Khajuraho/Varanasi and return. Flights connect Agra to
Delhi, Khajuraho and Varanasi.
Rail
Agra lies on the Delhi to Mumbai broad - gauge railway line.
Express trains from Delhi, Mumbai, Calcutta, and Chennai halt at
Agra.
Road
Agra is connected to Delhi, Rajasthan and other cities of Uttar
Pradesh by an excellent bus service.
