In the land of lamas

The 15-day Ladakh festival, organised every year from September 1 in Leh, showcases region’s unique customs and cultural heritage that have survived the vagaries of modernism. Yangchan Dolma reports from Leh

THE fabled city of Ladakh is a land of celebrations. Here every moment of life is celebrated in a grand way. Every occasion, whether family or social, right from the birth of a child to marriage or the harvest season turn into joyous festivities with the entire village joining in.

The birth of the first baby is a grand occasion and is celebrated in an equally grand manner. The seventh, 15th, 20th and the 30th day in a new-born baby’s life, which according to Ladakhi traditions are considered to be auspicious, are celebrated with gusto with everyone bringing Chang (a local beer brewed from barely or wheat) rice and Khataks (a white scarf used on auspicious occasions) to welcome the baby. The whole clan is busy feasting, dancing and singing folksongs. The musicians are paid fees for their performance by the relatives of the family.

These traditional celebrations are instrumental in keeping the community bond strong, especially during the long winter season, which lasts for almost six months, when snow-bound Ladakhis do not have much to do.

The celebrations, which form a part of the living heritage of this ‘moon country’, are attracting tourists from across the globe to witness a culture and lifestyle defined by traditions long forgotten elsewhere.

The Ladakh Festival, celebrated every year from September 1 to 15, is one such occasion that showcases the rich grandeur of the folk heritage of Ladakh providing a platform for its talented artistes.

The town of Leh, where the inaugural function of the festival is held every year, turns into a huge, lively and colourful carnival with local people joining in the celebrations in large numbers in their colourful ceremonial costumes.

The opening function is mega celebration in which cultural troupes, representing the traditions and culture of all regions of Ladakh from Changthag, Shyam, Indus Valley to Nubra valley, perform dances to the tune of traditional orchestra during a spectacular cultural procession through the markets of the Leh town.

Mock marriage parties, artistes wearing traditional dresses of the Ladakhi king and queen, Takshosma, (professional dancers of king) and village contingents singing songs and performing mask dances are the main feature of the cultural procession, which culminates at the Polo Ground where a grand function is held.

Ladakh used to be the entry point for the traders travelling on the famous ancient Silk Route. To commemorate this unique legacy, a Central Asian trade mart is held in the Leh bazaar, where the traditional scenario is reproduced in every detail right from caravans laden with typical goods to artistes dressed in period-costumes, enact scenes of customary trading, bartering and good-natured haggling that used to take place in the ancient times.

The festival is a unique opportunity to witness many of Ladakh’s traditions and customs in a short span of time, without having to traverse its often formidable outlying areas.

A first-time visitor Surinder Kumar says, "I was overwhelmed when an artiste wearing a traditional Ladakhi dress offered me a Khatak as soon as I arrived at the Leh airport." Tourists visiting the region during the festival are warmly welcomed by offering a traditional Khatak.

Unlike the previous editions, this year the festival was distinct in many ways. Khatok Chenmo (a dance headed by a member of the royal family) was introduced for the first time this year. The event created excitement among the locals as well. The entry was only by invitation and even the audience had to wear traditional dresses.

The focus of the festival was also enalarged this year by expanding the festivities from Leh to other destinations. Events were held in Changthang, eastern Ladakh, at the famous Tsomoriri lake and in Nubra Valley, western Ladakh.

According to Assistant Director, Tourism, Leh, Nessar Hussian, "Earlier Leh and its adjacent areas used to be the centre of the festivities. This year, with an aim to explore the tourism potential of other regions, which are quite distinct from each other, the pastrol culture of Changthang and double-hump camels of the Nubra valley were the main feature of the festival.

The double-humped camel, known as Bactrian camel, is found only in Nubra valley of Ladakh in the country and is the new tourist attraction of the valley. The double-humped camel safris are also available in Leh at Sindhu Ghat near Shey village.

The Ladakh Festival is also reviving some of the traditional games like archery. Various village archery festivals were held as part of the celebrations.

Horse polo was another major attraction of the festival. According to District Tourism Officer Mehbob, "Horse polo was the main time-pass of the royals in Ladakh. Now it is quite a sought-after tourist activity. Tourists, visiting in a big group, are willing to pay Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 per match." In the Muslim-dominated area of Turkuk, a horse polo match is a favourite activity, especially during Nouroz.

At present, there are only three teams which play polo. These are owned by the Ladakh Scout, a unit of the Indian Army and the District Animal Husbandry Department. The department recently spent Rs 2 lakh for purchasing horses because of the growing popularity of the sport.

Talking about the festival, Tourism Minister Nawang Rigzin Jora, who hails from Leh, says, "The festival is an initiative by the state government to lengthen the tourist season and attract more tourists to Ladakh. It has been quite a success as the number of tourists is increasing significantly each year. More than 70,000 tourists visited Ladakh last year. This year till August the number of tourists had already reached 67,585."

According to Jora, the number of visitors may not be large as compared to other tourist destinations but since they spent some two to three weeks here, the tourists sometimes spent Rs 1 lakh or even more per visit."