Visit to Janapada Loka

Driving on the Bangalore - Mysore "highway" (State Highway 17) is not really a pleasurable experience anymore. What with so many towns en-route & the never ending speed breakers. If you think you just picked speed and could cruise blissfully, there is a fully loaded cart coming your way from the wrong side, or a speed breaker, or somebody crossing the road, or passing through a town...if that's not enough, the traffic would be high & hence getting stuck in Ramanagar, Channapatna, or, Mandya. So, you end up feeling that it is a slightly better experience than driving on Bangalore roads. Other than that, it's not really exhilerating driving to Mysore.

Any way, having bought the new Maruti Suzuki Ertiga, i deliberated with my family where we could go together? Since none of us had seen Jaanapada Loka (In Kannada: Jaanapada = Folk, Loka = World), we decided to spend time there, have food in the adjoining Kamath Lokaruchi, & come back by evening. Inquiry with our neighbors revealed that it is a beautiful place & quite engaging for kids, young, & the old, and we could comfortably spend about 4 - 5 hours there. Jaanapada Loka is the place where we get to see some of the folk culture from Karnataka and the various peoples that make up the diaspora of the State of Karnataka. This is just outside Ramanagar district (about 5 - 6 Km) en-route to Mysore on the Bangalore - Mysore highway.

We can also see the normal village atmosphere here, beautifully created with creations of various people we can come across in a village, with the typical rural Karnataka ambience. Entrance fee is very nominal & it is free for kids up to the age 5 (i remember so). A good thing to do is to start early & be at Kamath Lokaruchi by 9 am so that you can enjoy hearty buffet breakfast. Then, you can visit Jaanapada Loka for a good 2.5 - 3 hours, come back again for lunch by 12.30 pm (very often it gets crowded by 1 pm right up to 2.30 or 3 pm), & then go back again to explore anything left, before you decide to head home. 

 

This is the entrance to Jaanapada Loka.

 

Often, we come across beautifully decorated cows in colorful garments and accessories at the entrance.

As we enter, on either side we see life size creation of folk artists welcoming the guests.  

 

Inside Lokamatha Mandir are displayed the various utensils, tools, different types of graneries and various other accessories of daily use in the rural Karnataka.

This is the entrance to the Heritage Village that has been created within Jaanapada Loka.

Inside Lokamahal we can find many toys and dolls (mostly hand made using hand tools) on display. Also, we can find artefacts commonly used in folk art.

In the passage all around Chitra Kuteera (at the periphery), we see pictures of the many rural communities and tribes from Karnataka. Usually, there will be a guide to help explain the various communities, their culture, and practices.

Model of the Mysore Palace (Amba Vilas Palace), and some of the dolls on display during Navaraatri (Nava = nine, Raatri = night).

Inside the heritage village, a village woman is making flour from rice, jowar or wheat.

A village couple extracting oil from seeds. 

Milk for the house & for others...a typical cow shed. 

Woman weaving basket made of bamboo fibre...for a living and own use...

Preparing to feed the family by grinding flour amidst casual talk...in the front porch of their house...

Quenching the thirst of family by drawing water from a nearby well.

"Bungalows" in the hinterlands of Karnataka...These homes, though small, are quite well equipped for a simple, contented life. It consists of a small verandah, bathroom, living cum dining, and kitchen. The roof is usually thatched, & the walls are made of a mix of clay and limestone. Very often, cows and sheep can be found within the premises, feeding leisurely...

Folk artists performing a form of dance cum music called Beesu Kamsaale.

Working hard to quench the Nation's hunger...a farmer couple in the fields...

Old cannon on display...approximate date of the cannon - AD 1721

A Ratha (car) used very commonly in most parts of the country...especially in the temples where Car festival is conducted every year...The Car festival draws thousands of believers from across the country. The Car below, was employed in the Someshwara Temple of Halasooru (Ulsoor), Bangalore. It is widely believed, those who participate in pulling the Car with the presiding deity of the temple seated inside the car, their sins are washed away. There is huge scramble among the devotees to lay their hands on the rope to pull the Car, even for just a few feet...Usually, the devotees will be shouting the Lord's names, tremendous energy to have a glimpse of the Lord, & to pull the Car. It is a spectacle to behold, and a once in a lifetime opportunity. Sometimes, things can go a little haywire, resulting in stampede, and death as well.

Details of the above car on display...