The Extravagance of Gujarat and Gujarati Culture

Pancholi Bhavesh
3 min readApr 25, 2018

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The utterly diversified and colorful Gujarat plays an important role in the cultural aspect of India. The state of Gujarat boasts a vibrant tapestry of art, architecture, culture, gujarati folk music and heritage; all of which is quite evident in the vernacular lives of the locals. The diversity portrayed by Gujarat is a result of amalgamation of various ethnic groups constituting Gujarat’s population. The dire simplicity and amiability of Gujaratis have made them a flourishing exuberant community.

Here are some insights on the various aspects of Gujarati culture

1. Gujarati Customs and Traditions

Because many religions coexisting in the state, the people of Gujarat are polytheistic. Accepting different religious faiths, Gujaratis demonstrates a jovial mix of Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, and Buddhism. This amalgamation of multitude cultures is quite evident in their traditions, beliefs, customs, institutions, and practices. The natives lead out a balanced lifestyle due to the perfect method learning, religious practices and artistic traits that keep ancient gujarati music, painting, sculpting, weaving, etc alive. The cow is considered the Holy mother and hence worshipped devoutly by them. The mainly celebrated ceremonies of Gujaratis include birth, thread ceremony, marriage and death.

2. Gujarat doesn’t only speak Gujarati

Even though Gujarati is the mother tongue of all the natives of Gujarat, several other languages are also widely spoken throughout the state. Gujarati is a language derived from Sanskrit and it is the 26th most widely used language in the world. Gujarati language has about 11 different dialects, spoken in different parts of the state. Because the state of Gujarat shares its border with Maharashtra, UP and Rajasthan; a small section of its population speaks the native languages of the neighboring states: Marwari, Marathi, Hindi, Urdu and Sindhi.

3. It is only Fair to celebrate all these Festivals

The fairs and festivals of Gujarat showcase the real exuberance and life of Gujarat. Several thousands of people come here to witness the extravaganza during festivals. Festivals like Navratri, Diwali, Rathyatra and Kite festival. Other fairs that are organized in the state every year, are Shamlaji Melo, Bhadra Purnima Fair, and Mahadev Fair. These fairs lure people from all across the globe and increase the tourist crowd. The Rann Utsav is a grand festival and dishes out an exclusive carnival of sugam sangeet gujarati, dance and beauty of things connected with nature.

4. The Art and The Culture

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The vast assorted array of handcrafted products display intricate Gujarati. These art forms are not only popular in our country, but are a well-known entity all across the globe. These artistic products include leatherwork, metalwork, furniture, jewelry, embroidered garments, baked clay articles and mirror work. Gujarat also provides a broad range of ethnic items to the buyers, namely salwar, kurtas, skirts, cholis, ghagras, odhnis, and jackets. Intricate fine patterns are created on the patola sarees with high workmanship. The vernacular art forms of the state play a significant role in preserving its rich heritage. Some other aspects of art include music, dance, and literature.

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