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Facts

5,000 year old civilization


325 languages spoken 1,652 dialects
18 official languages
29 states, 5 union territories
3.28 million sq. kilometers - Area
7,516 kilometers - Coastline
1,000,000,000 people in 2000
Parliamentary form of Government
Secular democratic constitution
Worlds largest democracy since 55 years
4th largest economy
Fastest growing IT super power
Indian Railways ,the biggest employer in the world.

Festivals
Of
India

DURGA PUJA
Celebrated in autumn, mainly in BengaL The
Divine Mother (good) is represented as
trampling underfoot the demon Mahishasur
(evil) who terrorized the earth until he was
slain by her. Her image everywhere is
surrounded by the images of her children
Ganesha ( god of wisdom and the
bestower of success),
Kartikeya (god of war),
SaraSwati(goddess of learning and the
arts) and Lakshmi (goddess of wealth and
beauty). People wear new clothes and
exchange gifts of new clothes.

Ganesh Chaturthi
The spectacular eleven day Ganesh
Chaturthi festival honors the birth of
the beloved Hindu elephant-headed
god, Lord Ganesha.
The start of the festival sees huge,
elaborately crafted statutes of
Ganesha installed in homes and
podiums, which have been especially
constructed and beautifully
decorated.
At the end of the festival, the
statutes are paraded through the
streets, accompanied by much

DIWALI

Celebrated mainly by merchants in autumn,


after Dasehra, chiefly in northern India. The
word diwali comes ftom the Hindi word
deepavali which means "row of lights."
It lasts fur two days. On the first day families
light "diye" in the hope that Lakshmi the
goddess of prosperity will visit their homes.
They also pray to Ganesha, god of wisdom
and good luck.
On the second night, families pray, feast and
set off fireworks to ward off eviL.

HOLI
Celebrated in February or March on the day after
the full-moon. In Bengal, this festival is called
DoL.Everyone robs colored powder on each
other and also drench each other with colored
liquid.
There are two ancient legends that explain the
origin of HoIi. One is about Krishna and Radha
and the other is about Prahlad and HoIika the
demon ogress. The name Holi is derived fom
Holika.

INDEPENDENCE DAY
Celebrated on August 15, which is the
anniversary of the day in 1947 when
independence was formally granted at
midnight to India. Prior to this the
British had ruled India for over 200
years.
There is a flag hoisting ceremony in
schools, institutions and homes where
the national anthem (written by
Rabindranath Tagore) is sung.

Famous
Landmarks

Taj Mahal, Agra

A Tribute to Beauty is a "symbol of eternal love, regarded as one of the eight


wonders of the world it is built entirely of white marble and seems to glow in
the light of the full moon. Like a jewel, the Taj sparkles in moonlight when the
semi-precious stones inlaid into the white marble on the main mausoleum catch
the glow of the moon.

India Gate, Delhi

Gateway
Gateway made
made of
of Sand
Sand Stone
Stone is
is very
very dominating
dominating and
and intimidating
intimidating in
in its
its outlook.
outlook.
The
The interesting
interesting thing
thing about
about the
the Delhi
Delhi gate
gate is
is that
that it
it has
has its
its century
century old
old wooden
wooden
locking
locking system.
system. The
The system
system is
is very
very complex
complex and
and thus
thus it
it had
had remained
remained unused
unused
since
since the
the times
times of
of British
British

Lotus Temple, Delhi

Located
Located in
in the
the south
south of
of Delhi,
Delhi, it
it is
is lotus
lotus shaped
shaped and
and has
has rightly
rightly been
been given
given the
the
name.
name. It
It is
is open
open to
to all
all faiths
faiths and
and is
is an
an ideal
ideal place
place for
for meditation
meditation and
and obtaining
obtaining
peace
peace and
and tranquility.
tranquility.

Qutub Minar, Delhi

Famed as the highest brick minaret of the world, Highest brick tower in the
world This ornate tower is now an eminent member of the World Heritage
Site community

Red Fort, Delhi

Delhi's famous Red Fort is known by that name because of the red stone with
which it is built and it is one of the most magnificent palaces in the world,
famous for its delicately carved inlaid and Royal chambers

Akshardham Temple, Delhi

It is worlds largest Hindu temple The monument is a fusion of several


architectural styles of pink stone and pure white marble. Pink stone symbolizes
devotion in eternal bloom and white marble of absolute purity and eternal
peace. It is one of the wonders of the modern world, and the wonders of modern
India.

Jantar Mantar, Jaipur

It is the largest stone observatory in the World The observatory has fourteen
statistical instruments for measuring time, predicting eclipses and to ascertain
other astronomical events

Hawa Mahal, Jaipur

It is also known as Palace of Winds is the most sensational monument in the


city of Jaipur. was originally constructed to offer women of the court an upper
hand, so that they can watch the activities taking place in the bazaar and the
surrounding streets it is shaped like a pyramid and is a five-storied building,
with number of small windows and screens, with arched roofs .

Golden Temple, Amritsar

One of the most famous religious places in India. Located in the city of Amritsar,
its name literally means House of God. , richly ornamented with marble
sculptures, golden gilding, and large quantities of precious stones it is a place of
both stupendous beauty and sublime peacefulness

Jal Mahal, Jaipur

It is noted for its sophisticated design and grand architecture. The Palace was
developed as a pleasure spot and was used for the royal duck shooting parties.
It is a five-story palace, with the first four floors being submerged under water

Victoria Memorial, Kolkatta

It was built to commemorate Queen Victorias 25-year reign over India It


currently serves as a museum. it is a majestic white marble building surrounded
by a sprawling garden. A black bronze Angel of Victory, holding a bugle in her
hand is placed at the apex of the dome

Meenaskshi Temple, Madurai


One of the largest temple complexes in India, the grandeur of the Meenakshi
temple has remained undiminished for the past two thousand years. It has 12
gateways, ranging in height from 45 to 50 m, the tallest being the southern one.
The southern gateway is beautifully proportioned and is nine stories high,
crowded with the images of gods, goddesses. in brilliant colors.

Khajuraho - Land of The Moon God

Situated in Madhya Pradesh, India, Khajuraho oozes with passion, eroticism,


dance and music and other finesses of creative arts depicted in sculpture and
images of the temples

Lake Palace, Udaipur

This palace is situated on an island, in the middle of Lake Pichola. Constructed


in white marble, it is one of the most mesmerizing palaces there are a number of
apartments within the palace itself. Ornamented with painted mirrors, inlaid
stones, cusped arched and lotus leaves, the rooms in these apartments bring
back the memories of the bygone royal era.

Dance in India
Origin of Dance in India
In Hindu mythology,
dance is believed to
have been conceived
by Brahma. Brahma
inspired the sage
Bharata Muni to write
the Natya Shastra, a
treatise on
performing arts, from
which a codified
practice of dance and
drama emerged.
Shiva as Nataraja is
worshipped as the Lord of
Dance in Hinduism.

Dance
in
India
Classical
Kathakali
Bharatanatyam
Kathakali
is a highly
Dating back
to
stylized
classical
1000 BCE,
dance-drama
formis
Bharatanatyam
which
originated
from
a classical
dance
Kerala
the
17th
from in
the
South
century.
Thisof
Indian[23]
state
classical
dance form is
Tamil Nadu,
particularly
practiced noticed for
dancer's
elaborate
predominantly
in
costume,
modern towering
times by
head
gear,The
billowing
women.
skirts,
and
long silver
dance
is usually
nails.
accompanied by
classical Carnatic
music.

Dance

Tutsa Dancers from Changlang district

Chholiya, the sword dance of Uttarakhand

Folk and Tribal Dance Form


Folk dances and plays in India retain
significance rural areas as the expression of
the daily work and rituals of village
communities. These dances have their roots
in religious and seasonal festivals that have
become a background for such celebrations.
They are mostly performed in groups.

Flavors Of India

THANK
YOU

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