Bhaktapur locals have expedited the preparations toward Gaijatra festival, to be celebrated on Tuesday. Local residents belonging to the Newar community gather to celebrate Gijatra amid much fervor with traditional Lakhe dance, dramas and processions.
According to Cultural Expert Om Dhaubadel, Gaijatra is celebrated in Bhaktapur for nine days. The locals had started preparing for Gaijatra right after the completion of Gathemangal festival.
Gaijatra is taken as the platform for showcasing hundreds of dance performances under about two thousand categories. Devi dance, Bhaila dance, Badar dance, Gaichaa dance, Lusi dance, Fakdali dance, Nagacha dances are performed during the festival.
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Similarly, Lakhey dance, Natu (Mathu) dance, Kalaali dance, Jungali dance, Bhalu dance, Khicha dance, Khya dance, Kawacha dance and other forms like Hanuman, Mheka, Kijapuja, Kapayfenegu, Salan dance, Jhya-jhya dance are also showcased during the festival.
Ghintanghisi is one of the most popular forms of dance performed during Gaijatra in Bhaktapur.
Moreover, Bhaktapur Municipality has announced awards for those dances that perform their best at the festival. Every year, Bhaktapur Municipality honors the best dance performers with cash prize in the first, second, third and consolation positions. This year, the cash prize has been allocated for 24 different categories of performances.
According to a notice published by the municipality, the winner will receive a cash prize of Rs 30,000, while the consolation prize is Rs 3,000. The municipality has decided to form a judges’ panel from among the locals to select the winners.
Radheshyam Faizul, a resident of Chyamasingh, Bhaktapur, informed that auditions for the main even had begun. “Our aim is not to winning the cash prize. The purpose is to preserve our traditions and keep our culture alive through these performances,” Faizul said.
President of Nepal Revolutionists’ Cultural Union, Balkrishna Banmala, said, “The preparations have begun in all wards. Gaijatra celebrations start right after Janai Purnima for a whole eight nights, nine days up till Krishna Ashtami. Bhaktapur remains in a celebratory mood for nine whole days with traditional dance, drama and music in the run up to the festival.”
