'Bhimthadi Jatra- 12th Edition of Pune's Largest Rural Carnival!

 Over 302 Stalls to display works

Focus on Christmas and a Special section called as “Petting Zoo” for children

The Raghu Dixit Project and Resonance to perform

Bhimthadi Select Fashion show on opening night

Pune, Friday, 27th December, 2017:  One of Pune’s biggest cultural events, Bhimthadi Jatra - a four-day cultural fair that aims at bridging the gap between rural and urban India through an interface that allows the city of Pune to connect with village communities across Maharashtra — is being organised from December 22nd to 25th at the Agricultural College Ground, Sinchan Nagar, Pune. The Cultural festival will be a great way for many to indulge in not just shopping traditional products, but also a time to catch up with friends and relatives, and get a better understanding of the rural life. 

The 12th edition of Bhimthadi Jatra which is spearheaded and is a brainchild of Smt. Sunandatai Pawar will be inaugurated by a group of Leading Women from across Pune who have made a mark for themselves.  Present amongst the dignitaries for the inauguration would be Smt. Mukta Tilak - Mayor ofPune City  along with six other women ,  Smt. Jyoti Priya Singh – Deputy Chief of Police, Smt. Swati Sathe – Incharge Yerwada Jail Pune, Smt. Sindhutai Sapkal – Social trailblazer who works for orphans , Smt. Sumantai Kirloskar- highly respected and much loved Philanthropist, Smt. Vedanti Raje Bhosale - Philanthropist, Smt. Varsha Chordia - Chairperson, FICCI  FLO Pune chapter, who will inaugurate the Bhimthadi Jatra Festival on 22nd December at 10.00 am.

Maharashtrian food, traditional culture, hand crafted products by women from rural regions from across Maharashtra are just a few things to mention which will be displayed at this carnival. Since the past 11 years, this fest has been much appreciated and loved by 'Punekars' and have thereby supported and promoted the hard work that is put in by  them and the artisans of Maharashtra. 

Bhimthadi Jatra's aim and mission has always been to bring about a socio-economic upliftment in the lives of rural women and make them self sufficient. This has surely blossomed into a reality. Today many rural women have been able to support their families through this festival and has been a saving grace for many.  It is only because of the sheer guidance and unending support of Sunandatai Pawar (Trustee, ADT, Baramati), that the festival has been able to take shape with new ideas each year. 

 Last year the carnival witnessed a huge footfall of more than 1 lakh visitors and had over 300 stalls displaying various traditional artwork. This year too the festival witnessed a tremendous footfall with tribal cultural centre and tribal performances being the main highlight of this year’s festival.

Highlight of the festival this year?

Each year 'Bhimthadi Jatra' makes it a point to add on to its collection and this year too it will be no disappointment. A special collection of traditional Aadivasi artwork will be exhibited. A wide range of all Aadivasi tribal will be showcased this year for purchase which in turn helps the women to run their livelihood.

Bhimthadi Jatra has come a long way in the past 12 years, and this year, it is implementing some serious changes to control the quality of stalls and to get a new target audience with discerning taste and higher spending power.

Along with a complete structural face-lift, It will be conducting screening and interviews to narrow down quality stalls for the Christmas edition ofBhimthadi jatra.

The Jatra also has a section for local wholesome cuisine from all over Maharashtra. There will be a ‘petting zoo’ for children and their parents, live shows and a flea market.

Bhimthadi Select, a special section of 20 stalls curated by Mrs. Pallavi Dutta comprising of artisans, craftsmen and designers working in the field of reviving and sustaining the traditional handlooms, handicrafts and other crafts of India. 

Mrs. Pallavi Datta is a textile enthusiast on a journey to explore the myriad delicious facets of sustainable fashion in India of now and yore She was announced as theofficial Fashion Documentarian for Sustainable fashion and Indian textile day at the Lakme Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2017 

A special fashion show will be organized, where some of India's leading models and influential women of Pune will showcase handlooms and accessories that are on display at these 20 stalls on Bhimthadi Jatra's opening night i.e. on the 22^nd December 2017.

Music: This is one thing which attracts people of all age groups and this year 'Raghu Dixit Project' and 'Resonance' will also perform at the event.  Raghu Dixit is an Indian singer-song writer, producer, and film score composer who is the frontman for the Raghu Dixit Project, a multilingual folk music band 7pm onward on 23rd December 2017. Vaibhav Joshi and Anjali Marathe of Resonance will perform on 22nd December 2017 at 7.30pm onwards. People can enjoy the live shows by various folk and Tribal artists of the country.

Connecting the youth with cultural facts and knowledge can be a challenge but if done in the right way it is never too difficult and it is definitely the music at this fest which will enable many young people to connect to this festival.

Live demonstrations and workshops for kids and enthusiasts will be organized throughout the day. For example block printing, natural dying, urban gardening, healthy eating. etc. Bhimthadi Jatra is the perfect combination of culture, skills and entertainment. It is a magical blend of rural tradition and ethics to modern exhibition. Come and be a part of this phenomenal carnival.

Travel and booking for the fest is no more of a hassle. You can now book your tickets on bookmyshow and for easy travel you can use the code JATRA17 on Uber and avail 30% discount on your ride. Plus, on high demand Bhimthadi Jatra has provided 5 Acres of extra parking this year.

Bhimthadi Jatra 2017 New Agricultural Ground, Range Hill Road, Shivaji Nagar, Pune. Maharashtra. 22nd to 25th December’17.   Time: 10 am to 10 pm.