Hajipir Mela is one of the largest festivals, not only in Kutch but in Gujarat as well. It’s attended by lakhs of Muslims and Hindus alike, making it a very important event in Kutch
By Sreekanth Sanjay Penugonda
Place: Hajipir, Kutch, Gujarat
Hajipir mela is one of the most popular and biggest Melas (Festivals) of Gujarat. This fair is celebrated in the memory of a Muslim saint, Pir Hazrat Haji Ali Shah Bukhari.
I have been living Kutch from past the few months and trying to explore the landscape, culture art and food of this place. Kutch being the largest district in India is very vast and takes a lot of time to travel from one end to the other. Kutch is known for very big melas like Mota Yaksh no mela which takes place during October and Hajipir no mela during April. I feel melas are the great places to understand the culture, lifestyle and community dynamics of the region.
This year in April I got a chance to attend the Hajipir mela and see myself. One can reach the Hajipir dargah (Shrine) in multiple ways. There are bus services from Bhuj to Hajipir via Nakhatrana and few buses go via Dhordo. I along with my friend went to Hajipir via Dhordo and the road is very beautiful. With White Rann of Kutch on one side, this narrow road goes through the Desert of Kutch and the whole landscape looks barren with no vegetation except for Prosopis Juliflora or ‘Gaando bawal’ in Gujarati, a invasive tree which was introduced to Southern India in 1877 by British. This plant is a native of South America and is very adaptable to desert landscapes. It has become the main threat to the grasslands of Gujarat and tree itself cannot be used as a fodder for the livestock.
Hajipir, a Muslim saint is believed to be a soldier in Shahabuddin Muhammad Ghauri, a ruler from Ghurid dynasty. Hajipir also known as Zinda pir or Vali pir settled in the village of ‘Nara’ after he left his service as a soldier. His original name was Ali Akbar, after he left service in the army, he spent his rest of life protecting the animals and people driven away by local dacoits. He performed Hajj (A highest pilgrimage in Islamic faith) and entitled to be ‘Haji’.
He roamed through Banni, Pachcham and Garada and preached the tenets of Islam, as a result some of which some of the Solanki Rajputs embraced the faith. Once when notorious Ker rajputs forcibily drove away the cattle of Nara village, Hajipir ordered his Solanki disciples to regain them. In the fierce encounter that followed, the Solankis who were few in number, were slain by Ker Rajputs. Thereafter, Hajipir himself took up the pursuit and laid down his life fighting valiantly. His body was interred on the bank of Sodarana pond as desired by him. The present day Dargah stands on his tomb and every year on first Monday of ‘Chitra’, Hajipir mela (fair) is celebrated.
The fair is attended by thousands of devotees from different faiths, regions and states. Both the Hindus and Muslims revere the saint and visit his dargah and offer flowers, chadars and money. Some stories say that Hajipir was died while protecting a cow herd that belongs to a Rabari woman (Rabaris are one of the Hindu pastoral communities). That’s why he is revered by Hindus as well. ‘Ram Katha’ programs are staged by both Hindus and Muslims. Apart from this, there are also wrestling competitions are also held during the mela.
Read: Fakirani Jats of Kutch, Gujarat
People from far away districts of Gujarat visit the mela. They travel in Auto rickshaws, buses, taxis, Lorries to reach Hajipir. Devotees also walk from their villages, hundreds of kilometers in the hot sun to reach mela. The government of Gujarat also provides special bus services from Bhuj to reach the mela.
Devotees camp around the Hajipir dargah for three days and enjoy the mela. Mela have so many recreational things for both adults and children, like Giant wheels and huge swings. All these are make-shift which makes them risky, so my friend and I didn’t sit on any of those. Apart from these, there are multiple food stalls which mostly sell Indo-Chinese food, Pav bhaji, Ice creams and sweets. There are also numerous stores which sell the ‘Ajrakh’ printed clothes, bandhni shawls and sarees and other handicrafts like wooden and Lac items.
People camp here for three days in the desert and prepare food for these three in the camps. There were so many shops in the mela which sold meat and groceries as well.
Interestingly, the meal is situated in Banni (Kutch district) and visited by the people from far away districts of Gujarat. But there are communities in Banni like, Mutwas, Jats and Samas which don’t visit the mela. Other communities from Banni like Gharasia Jats and Vada Kolis visit mela solely for recreational purposes.
Personally, I love visiting melas because they are like a window into the lives of local communities and I have visited few other melas in Kutch before. But the Hajipir mela is different. This was the first time I witnessed Hindus and Muslims celebrating mela in such a grand scale. Since there was a huge crowd, there was also a large amount of trash in the whole of Hajipir village and the roads leading to it. The village sits on the boundary of Chharidhand wetland reserve, which is home to a large number of migratory birds, the plastic waste left by people in the mela enters this reserve effecting its ecology.
Read: Kutch from Kingdom to District
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