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Kartik Poornima festival celebrated with
fireworks and dance at Jagmandir
- Festival keeping alive cultural traditions of Eternal Mewar
- Aashka’s special exhibition at Jagmandir for guests
Udaipur, November 5, 2006: It was a night to remember at Jagmandir, the exquisite island-palace on Lake Pichola in Udaipur. An enchanting performance of Sufi Kathak by Ms Manjari Chaturvedi was followed by fireworks that lit up the night sky over Udaipur’s Lake Pichola.
Kartik Poornima festival reached its crescendo on the island palace, making it memorable for both foreign and Indian guests who witnessed the regal festival organized by the Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation (MMCF), Udaipur.
Shriji Arvind Singh Mewar, Chairman and Managing Trustee of MMCF, was the chief guest at the Kartik Poornima festival and he graciously felicitated the performing artistes for their aesthetic efforts. He said, “Ms Manjari Chaturvedi’s Sufi Kathak performance reinforced the ideal of eternal brotherhood and love that goes beyond geographical boundaries.” He lauded Ms Manjari’s performance and her team of musicians and qawwals whose full-throated vocals made the evening truly memorable.
Among those who witnessed the stirring performance included Rajasthan’s Home Minister, Mr Gulab Chand Kataria, Chief Commissioner of Income Tax Mr Vijay Ranjan, the Divisional Commissioner, Mr. Ram Rakh, the Collector and District Magistrate of Udaipur Mr Shikhar Agrawal, Abercrombie & Kent’s director sales and marketing, Mr Rajesh Khanna, guests from overseas and India, and mediapersons specially invited for this regal festival that is keeping alive the age-old traditions of Rajasthan.
For most guests, it was the first time that they witnessed the ‘living heritage’ of Eternal Mewar and were enthralled by the Sufi Kathak performance of Ms Manjari Chaturvedi. Ms Manjari is the only performing artiste of Sufi Kathak; she has likened Sufi Kathak to ‘a moving meditation’. Her performance was based on the age-old musical compositions of Amir Khusro; a glittering Jagmandir provided the perfect backdrop for her moving performance.
The Sufi Kathak performance was preceded by an enlightening discourse on ‘Sufism – Religion of love’ by Ms Zia Lambrou of Mumbai who is a teacher of sacred Sufi dances. She provided the context of Sufism, a religion that abounds with love, and related it to spiritual lyrics and mystical dance. Ms Zia’s presentation was appreciated by the audience who could relate the Sufi traditions of India to those being practiced and preserved worldwide.
A mystical festival
“Kartik Poornima is a mystical festival,” said Mr Trilok C Sharma, secretary – MMCF, adding, “We seek the divine blessings of Lord Brahma through the invocation of dance and music. MMCF has been organizing the Kartik Poornima festival every year with the objective of keeping alive the intangible cultural traditions of Eternal Mewar and spreading the message of peace and love through such regal festivals.”
This year’s regal festival also witnessed a special exhibition by Aashka, the souvenir and lifestyle boutique, at the Darikhana in Jagmandir. Aashka, an initiative of Princess Bhargavi Kumari Mewar, presented a range of arts and crafts reflecting the rich traditions of Mewar. For the guests, it was an opportunity to take home a piece of Mewar’s heritage.
Princess Bhargavi Kumari Mewar, in her message, lauded the continuing efforts of MMCF in organizing the regal festivals and reaching out to global audiences with its humane messages of piety and peace.
HRH Group of Hotels, Udaipur were the sponsors for this year’s Kartik Poornima festival at Jagmandir. Dignitaries and guests experienced the hospitality of the HRH Group at the lavish cocktails and special theme-dinner at the Kunwarpada ka Mahal lawns on the island-palace.
The Corporate Chef, Mr Milind Patel, revealed, “It’s an international multi-cuisine dinner that has been specially prepared for the evening. White is the colour of all the dishes and its accompaniments.”
Cream of almond soup was followed by grilled fish with white sauce; Murgh ka mokul, a chicken preparation in cashew nut paste, was an exclusive recipe from the royal kitchens of Mewar. Desserts were especially white too: White Forest gateau made from white chocolate and oranges was the speciality of the evening.
Upholding timeless values
MMCF, upholding the values of the House of Mewar, is instrumental in preserving the intangible cultural heritage of Eternal Mewar.
Kartik Poornima occupies a pride of place in calendar of regal festivals organized every year by the MMCF. Holi, Gangaur and Ashwa Poojan are the other regal festivals celebrated with traditional dignity at the City Palace complex.
Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation (MMCF), established by His late Highness Maharana Bhagwat Singhji Mewar in 1969, has been facilitating the development of Udaipur as a heritage-city. MMCF has launched innumerable developmental activities to enhance the quality of life of the people of this historic city.
Education and outreach programmes, health care, heritage preservation and conservation, museum management and preservation of places of religious worship are some of the key activities of MMCF.
The foundation has instituted annual international and national awards granted for services of a permanent value rendered to society. In addition, MMCF has set up a number of subsidiary trusts for religious and charitable purposes to give assistance to the underprivileged without distinction of caste, creed or religion.
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