 Kadlekayi Parishe is one of the traditional festivals of Karnataka state of India. This is a two day festival and is organized near the Dodda Ganesha Temple in Basavanagudi, Bangalore. The temple is dedicated to Nandi, the bull who is Lord Shiva's 'vaahan’. Farmers in large numbers flock to the city to participate in Kadlekayi Parishe. This is basically a groundnut fair and is rooted into myths and legends.
Etymology of Kadlekayi Parishe Kadalekai Parishe is a Kannada word. The literal meaning of Kadlekayi Parishe is Groundnut fair. Legend of Kadlekayi Parishe Legend has it that in the ancient days, Basavanagudi was surrounded by villages like Sunkenahalli, Guttahalli, Mavalli, Dasarahalli and other places where groundnut was cultivated. However, on every full moon night a bull would charge into the agricultural fields and destroy the produce. The worried farmers then tried to appease Basava (Nandi) by worshipping him. They also pledged to offer their first yield to him and their prayers were answered. Subsequently, an idol of Basava was found close by in the year 1537. After the idol was found, Kempe Gowda built a temple in the honour of ‘Dodda Basava’ on top of the Basavanagudi hillock and installed the idol. This temple is known as Bull Temple. From then onwards, the farmers from surrounding villages come here every year to worship him. As promised, they offer their annual harvest of groundnut as offering to Lord Basava. This is accompanied by the annual fair, which is known as the Kadlekai Parishe. This traditional fair attracts a huge number of visitors. Celebration of Kadlekayi Parishe Kadlekayi Parishe fair commences from the last Monday or Ganesha Somvara in the month of Karthik (Hindu month). This is a kind of thanksgiving ceremony dedicated to Nandi. In the fair, a number of food, clothing and accessory stalls are arranged. People can buy groundnuts, traditional toys and clay trinkets, plastic and glass dolls etc. The variety of food items comprise of Bajji, Bonda, Batthaas, Kalyana seve or Bendu etc. In the year 2015, students of a reputed college of the city distributed around 50,000 cloth bags to the vendors to make this fair eco friendly. |
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