Guga Mari shrine is the venue for a regional carnival — Mela Chhapar Da, which is a mega event organised every year in Ludhiana district of Punjab, in the memory of Guga Pir, a Chauhan Rajput.
This mela (fair) is one of the most popular and spectacular festivals of the Malwa belt of Punjab. People mainly worship snake embodiment of Guga Pir in this fair.
Started around 150 years ago, the number of people attending the fair has risen to millions in the recent years.
Once a purely religious congregation to worship Gugga, Mela Chhapar now seems to have been hijacked by politicians and entrepreneurs.
The four-day event starts today on 22 September with its first day known as Chowkian.
For more information click the above audio link to listen to a report by SBS Punjabi’s Preetinder Grewal…
