What makes Barmer a great offbeat destination in Rajasthan?

Many years ago, disgruntled government officers who found themselves posted in Barmer, used to call the desert town Kaala Pani. For them, it was the same thing as the Cellular Jail in Port Blair, Andamans, which was famously known as Kaala Pani.



It must have been the relentless heat in summers, unbearable cold in winters and vast expanse of desert for company. This was years ago, when tourism was not a big thing yet. Only in 2009, it was found out that Barmer was sitting on a large oil basin. Cha-ching! How the wheels turned for Barmer!


But even before the discovery of the oil field, even though Barmer was a land of extremes, it did have quite a lot of interesting things around, known only to the discerning travellers. For instance, the famous Jagdambe Mata Temple is believed to be more than 500-years-old. It is a major crowd puller. The temple, as wonderfully old as it is, is not why we are here today. The thing that caught our attention is the cultural side of Barmer that stayed hidden or unexplored for so long.



If you love Pushkar Mela, you will find the annual Mallinath Cattle Fair at Tilwara fascinating. The annual fair is all about Rajasthani culture and tradition. Meaning, the fair is a great place to experience the authentic Rajasthani culture, practices that are as old as time itself. The Mallinath Cattle Fair can be a great place to experience camel milk the local way (if you haven’t already). The village is famous for camel milk and also hand block printing, carved wooden handicrafts and furniture.


Every March, Barmer gets ready for the very big and famous Thar Festival. Barmer district is a part of the Thar Desert and celebrates this fact in a grand way, in the form of the Thar Festival. When it comes to culture, we are no strangers to Rajasthani folk music and dance. Barmer is one place in Rajasthan that is very well known for folk music and dance.



Folk musicians come from various communities such as the Bhopas or the priest singers, Muslim Dholis or drummers, Langas and Manganiars. For the culturally-inclined travellers, experiencing these amazing communities of folk musicians and dancers would be an experience they will remember for a long time.

1. Where is Barmer located?
   Barmer district is located in Rajasthan. It is a part of the Thar Desert.
2. When is Thar Festival?
   Thar festival is held in March every year.
3. What are Sam Dunes?
   Sam dunes are the desert dune sites in Thar desert. Here, some of the sand dunes are 30-60 meter tall.