Why In The News?

• The Gavri is a 40-day annual ritual and folk festival performed by the Bhil community of the Mewar region in Rajasthan.

About the Gavri Festival:

⇒ The festival is typically performed during the Hindu months of Shravana and Bhadrapad (July to September), coinciding with the monsoon and harvest season.

⇒ The ritual is performed mainly by male members of the Bhil tribe, who enact various roles including gods, goddesses, demons, and other mythological characters.

⇒ The play enacts mythological tales related to the goddess Gauri, battles between good and evil.

About the Bhil Community:

⇒ The Bhils are one of the largest tribal (Adivasi) communities in India, primarily concentrated in Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Maharashtra.

⇒ They have a distinct cultural identity with unique customs, language (Bhili), and traditional practices tied closely to nature and animist beliefs blended with Hinduism.

⇒ The Bhils consider themselves descendants of Lord Shiva and his consort Parvati (Gauri).