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Elephants are an integral part of the Mysore Dasara Festival. The elephants form the core of the Mysore Dasara procession on the Vijayadashami day. The lead elephant carries the Golden Howdah (Chinnada Ambari) with the Goddess Chamundeshwari in it. The Golden Howdah weighs 750 kilograms and is made of gold.
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The Elephants start arriving to Mysore city in groups. They arrive to Mysore a month or so before the start of the actual festivities and they undergo practice for their march on the final day. The elephants are accompanied by their respective keepers or Mahouts. The elephants are usually brought in trucks and are occasionally walked the 70-km distance from their home base in the Nagarahole National Park to Mysore. Villagers greet the sacred animals all along their designated trekking route. As each party of pachyderms arrives at the Veerana Hosahalli forest checkpost in Hunsur taluk, from the forest, they are received by the District Minister, a host of officials and prominent persons from Mysore and people from nearby villages. The villagers perform folk dances, and beat drums and sing songs to welcome the elephants. This in keeping with the royal tradition of the Mysore Maharajas.
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While in their respective camps the elephants are served "Ragi mudde", a mixture of ragi and horse gram and fodder branches. But when they are royal guests in the royal city of Mysore preparing for Dasara, they are served with ‘royal’ food till the grand Dasara finale - Jamboo Savari. The elephants get to eat uddina bele (black gram), green gram, wheat, boiled rice, onion and vegetables in the mornings and evenings. They get rice, groundnut, coconut, jaggery and sugarcane with some salt to add taste to the diet after they return from their regular rehearsals. This food is served twice a day. They also get branch fodder like banyan leaves. Extra care is taken while serving food to the jumbos. High-calorie and protein-rich food is served to the elephants to improve their physical fitness.
The Dasara Elephants are usually caught by the elephant trainers via the Khedda operation. During the Wodeyar rule, the elephants thus caught were inspected in an open field for strength, personality, and character. The walking styles, weaknesses to seduction, the facial charisma were some of the factors considered for selection. Then the chosen elephants were trained for the festival. It is said that the king himself would oversee the training. Sometimes abandoned young elephants are also trained for dasara. The abode of the elephants during the rest of the year is usually their training camps and the surrounding National Parks. There are around 70 elephants in camps at Dubare and elsewhere. About 240 mahouts and kavadis care for the elephants.[ citation needed ]
The elephants are named in Kannada and usually have the names of Hindu gods and historical figures. Elephants Drona and Balarama carried the idol of deity Chamundeshwari housed in the Golden Howdah for a combined total of 30 years. Balarama took up the responsibility after Drona was electrocuted in 1998 at Nagarahole National Park. Balarama has been granted retirement after 13 years. The 52-year-old Arjuna replaced Balarama and carried the Golden Howdah during the Dasara 2012 Jamboo Sawari procession at Mysore on 24 October 2012. later Abhimanyu replaced Arjuna. Arjuna died on 4 December 2023 during a fight with wild tusker. The other elephants participating in the event are Bharatha, Kanthi, Gayathri, Kokila, Sri Rama, Gajendra, Biligiriranga, Vikram, Varalakshmi, and Sarojini.[ citation needed ]
The Dasara procession has faced increasing pressure from activists and campaigners to end its controversial use of elephants. Procession elephants, as well as their handlers known as ‘mahouts’, have died from several shocking incidents over the years. [1] [2] [3] [4]
In 2018, leaked footage from the elephants’ training ground showed an elephant swaying in distress. International press labelled the video “heartbreaking”, and reported on how the elephants must undergo two months of “rigorous training” in order to perform in the procession. [5]
Mysore, officially Mysuru, is the second-most populous city in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of Mysore district and Mysore division. As the traditional seat of the Wadiyar dynasty, the city functioned as the capital of the Kingdom of Mysore for almost six centuries. Known for its heritage structures, palaces, and its culture, Mysore has been called the "City of Palaces", the "Heritage City", and the "Cultural Capital of Karnataka". It is one of the cleanest cities in India according to the Swachh Survekshan.
Vijayadashami, more commonly known as Dussehra, and also known as Dasara or Dashain, is a major Hindu festival celebrated every year at the end of Durga Puja and Navaratri. It is observed on the tenth day of the month of Ashvin, the seventh in the Hindu lunisolar calendar. The festival typically falls in the Gregorian calendar months of September and October.
The Chamundi Hills are located 13 km east of Mysore, Karnataka, India. The name comes from the Chamundeshwari Temple at the peak. The average elevation is 1,060 metres (3,480 ft).
Mysore Palace, also known as Amba Vilas Palace, is a historical palace and a royal residence. It is located in Mysore, Karnataka, India. It used to be the official residence of the Wadiyar dynasty and the seat of the Kingdom of Mysore. The palace is in the centre of Mysore, and faces the Chamundi Hills eastward. Mysore is commonly described as the 'City of the Palaces', and there are seven palaces including this one. However, the Mysore Palace refers specifically to the one within the new fort.
Mysore district, officially Mysuru district, is an administrative district located in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. It is the administrative headquarters of Mysore division. Chamarajanagar District was carved out of the original larger Mysore District in the year 1998. The district is bounded by Chamrajanagar district to the southeast, Mandya district to the east and northeast, Kerala state to the south, Kodagu district to the west, and Hassan district to the north.
A howdah, or houdah, derived from the Arabic هودج, which means "bed carried by a camel", also known as hathi howdah, is a carriage which is positioned on the back of an elephant, or occasionally some other animal such as a camel, used most often in the past to carry wealthy people during progresses or processions, hunting or in warfare. It was also a symbol of wealth for the owner and as a result might be elaborately decorated, even with expensive gemstones.
Mysore Dasara is the state festival in the state of Karnataka in India. It is a 10-day festival, starting with nine nights called Navaratri and the last day being Vijayadashami. The festival is observed on the tenth day in the Hindu calendar month of Ashvina, which typically falls in the Gregorian months of September and October.
Balarama was the lead elephant of the Mysore Dasara procession and carried the idol of goddess Chamundeshwari on the fabled Golden Howdah thirteen times between 1999 and 2011. Balarama was a bull born about 1958 and was accompanied in the procession by other Dasara Elephants. Of the many elephants participating, Balarama was one of the star attractions when he carried on his back the sacred idol of goddess Chamundeshwari in the 750 kilograms (1,650 lb) golden howdah on the auspicious 10th day of Dasara celebrations.
Drona was one of the lead Dasara Elephants of the Jamboo Savari of Mysore Dasara. He carried the Golden Howdah for a record 18 years consecutive years between 1981 and 1997, before being electrocuted while grazing in 1998. Of all the carrier elephants since the 20th-century, he is considered the best "because he possessed an excellent ability to learn and correct himself".
The Golden Howdah,'ಚಿನ್ನದ ಅಂಬಾರಿ'(elephant seat or Chinnada Ambari in Kannada) is a howdah, the carrier mounted on the leading elephant during the Jamboo Savari of the famous Mysore Dasara. It is the cynosure of all eyes during the famous Dasara festivities. Since 2020, it has been carried by Abhimanyu.
The Golden Throne or Chinnada Simhasana or Ratna Simhasana in Kannada, was the royal throne of the rulers of the Kingdom of Mysore. It is one of the main attraction of Mysore Palace. It is kept for public viewing only during Dasara festival and on the rest of the days, it is disassembled and kept in safe lockers of the palace.
Mysore is a city in the state of Karnataka, India. It is known as the cultural capital of Karnataka. Mysore was the capital of the Wodeyar kings who ruled over the Mysore Kingdom for many centuries. Wodeyars were great patrons of art and music and have contributed significantly to make Mysore a cultural centre. Mysore is well known for its palaces, museums and art galleries and the festivities that take place here during the period of Dasara attract a worldwide audience. Mysore has also lent its name to popular dishes like Mysore Masala Dosa and Mysore Pak. Mysore is also the origin of the popular silk sari known as Mysore silk sari and has also given rise to a popular form of painting known as Mysore painting.
A khedda or the Khedda system was a stockade trap for the capture of a full herd of elephants that was used in India; other methods were also used to capture single elephants. The elephants were driven into the stockade by skilled mahouts mounted on domesticated elephants. This method was practiced widely in North-east India, particularly in the state of Assam, mostly in South India, and in particular in the erstwhile Mysore State state.
Ayudha Puja is a Hindu observance that falls on the ninth day of the bright half of the moon's cycle of 15 days in the month of September/October, popularly a part of the Navaratri festival. While the Navaratri festival is observed all over the country, the festivity that is widely marked as Ayudha Puja possesses slight variations of veneration and practices across India.
The Mysore Dasara 2013 is the 403rd edition of the annual royal festive gala event, a show of pomp and tradition that is held in the Mysore city in Karnataka, India for 10 days. The festival is called the Navaratri (meaning nine nights or Dussehra or Vijayadashami which conforms to the bright half of the month of Ashvin, from pratipadathithi to navamithithi in the Hindu calendar corresponding to 5 to 13 October during 2013. The festival is also called Nada Habba in Kannada language. The first day of the nine-day festivity started on 5 October with the traditional and religious special puja performed to Goddess Chamundeshwari in the Chamundi Temple on top of the Chamundi Hill, which forms the backdrop to the city; the temple was beautifully decorated with flowers and tourist from Gujarat, Rajasthan and other states enthralled the audience with their bhajan singing. On this occasion, floral tribute wa offered to the goddess by Jnanpith Award winner Chandrashekhara Kambara and festivities will continue for ten days. The ninth day of the festival is a special event called the Mahanavami when the royal sword is worshipped and taken in a procession of elephants, camels and horses. The festival concludes on 14 October on the dashami day with the grand finale of Jambusavari with the idol of Chamundeshawri set in a golden howdah mounted on a richly caparisoned elephant. The procession is taken through the streets of the city and ends in the Banni Mantap where, in the evening, a torch light parade is held. Symbolically, the festival represents the victory of good over evil.
Arjuna was an Asian elephant who, from 2012 to 2019, was the lead elephant and the carrier of the Golden Howdah at the Mysore Dasara. He was named after Arjuna, the third of the Pandava brothers from the Hindu epic Mahabharatha. Arjuna was part of a Karnataka Forest Department to tackle wild elephants across western Ghats of Karnataka and also operated in many states for capturing wild elephants. Arjuna died in combat on 4 December 2023.
Bannimantap is an historical place in the Indian city of Mysore, Karnataka, India. where the world famous Mysore Dasara Jumbo Savari parade marks the end and after which cultural programmes are host every year on Vijayadashami in the presence of the Governor of Karnataka, Chief Minister of Karnataka and other Council of Ministers of the Govt. of Karnataka.
Y. Subramanya Raju was an Indian artist who patronized the Mysore style of traditional art. He was born into a family of court painters in the princely state of Mysore. The Mysore Dasara Procession paintings which adorn the walls of the Kalyana Mantapa in the Mysore Palace are few of his exquisite works. In the later years, Raju involved himself with the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath for the promotion of fine art and artists in the State. Raju spent most of his years teaching and popularizing Mysore style of art, as a recognition, Emeritus Fellowship was awarded by the Ministry of Human Resource Development and the Government of India gave its National Award for his excellence in Traditional Mysore Painting.
Hanumanthanagar is a locality in Bannimantap, a suburb of Mysore coming on the Northern side of the city. It is part of Mysore district in Karnataka state of India. Hanumanth Nagar is famous for the Jumbo Savari with the golden Howdah, a part of Mysore Dasara, which marks an end of the procession in Bannimantap via Highway Circle of Hanumanth Nagar.