OVERVIEW
About the Festival
Jejuri Temple is located in the Jejuri town, which lies to the southeastern part of the Pune city of Maharashtra. The temple is dedicated to Lord Khandoba. Khandoba is widely believed to be an incarnation of Lord Shiva and is worshipped as the presiding deity by the Dhangar, Teli,Ramoshi, and Mang communities and even by some in the Lingayat,Maratha, Deshastha Brahmin,Mali and Jains community as a incarnation of Lord Shiva. Khandoba is said to have many wives, the primary ones being Mhalsa devi and Banai.
During Somvati Amavarsya, which is a new-moon day that falls on a Monday, a huge celebration is organized in Jejuri Khandoba temple. A palakhi (palanquin) procession of Khandoba and Mhalsa’s images is carried from the Gad-kot temple to the Karha river, where the images are ritually bathed. The palakhi procession is taken through temples in jejuri and khandoba is brought back to his temple before the end of Amavasya.
Next Somvati Amavasya at Jejuri Khandoba temple is on 21st August, 2017. The main ritual of the day is the offering of Bhandara i.e turmeric powder. The temple premise is almost covered with turmeric powder, because the root of turmeric is said to be in the shape of a linga, a phallic representation of Load Shiva. Large amounts of Turmeric powder are thrown in and around the temple on that day. Devotees virtually bathe in yellow colour. Thus the festival creates magnificent opportunities of capturing travel photography, portraits, candid moments and rich Indian culture. Fotorbit will conduct a day long photography workshop on this festival.
TOUR ITINERARY
We will start from Pune at around 7o’clock in the morning of 21st August (Monday), so that we can reach Jejuri before the rush hour starts. Meeting point will be later announced by the Team Leader (Arun Saha). Before the rush of the rituals starts, we need to prepare our gears and secure a place on the roof top of the Temple, from where we can view the entire program at its best & shoot.
The main entrance of the temple gets closed by 1 pm and the procession of the Palkhi gets started. By 3 pm the Palkhi comes down the hill and heads towards the river Karaha for the final ritual. The bathing ritual happens around 5 pm with splashing water and turmeric powder and it brings the end of the day long festival. After covering the entire program, we are expecting to return Pune around 8pm.
FAQ
Am I eligible for this tour ?
Anyone above 18 years is welcome to join this photo tour. And if you are interested in travel photography and in Indian heritage and culture, you will enjoy this festival.
I am new in photography. Will I join this trip ?
Yes offcourse. This tour is for photography enthusiastic people. The more you travel and explore, your photographic eye will open. This festival will provide you immense opportunities to create good frames. Moreover, our Team leader will be here, to guide you.
What equipments are required for this Trip ?
Well, even point and shoot camera will work fine. If you have DSLR camera, any medium zoom lens and a wide angle lens will work best to capture this event. Tripod not required.
Any prerequisite information regarding the trip ?
Please keep in mind the following matters:
- One has to climb 400 stairs to reach the main temple arena. So be prepare to walk little bit.
- Foot gears are strictly not allowed into the main temple. There is a shop on the midway of the stairs where we can keep our shoes and go barefoot.
- For protection from turmeric powder it is advisable to cover your camera and lens with transparent plastic or raincover.
COST & TERMS
Workshop fee is Rs. 3500/- per person. It includes the transport cost (Pune to Jejuri and back), food (that includes your breakfast and lunch) and workshop fee.
Workshop fee doesn’t include hotel cost of Pune. But we can assist you to arrange your hotel as per your requirement.
BOOK NOW ! SEATS ARE LIMITED !
