The 11th Rohi Rang Mela ended here on Wednesday.
The three-day annual festival is a tribute to sufi poet Khawaja Ghulam Fareed.
The festival is organised in Jhok Fareed area, spread over 6.4 million acres of land.
The Mela was inaugurated by the current leader of the sufi order, Khwaja Moeenuddin Koreja.
He told The Express Tribune that the event was one of the most important cultural events in the region.He said it was held in commemoration of the love Fareed had expressed for Cholistan in his poetry.
The event was attended by thousands of people, who travelled from various parts of the province. Most of them had set up camps at the festival site. There were many stall offering various products such as handmade jewellery, embroidered clothes and decorative items.
Salim, who had set up a jewellery stall, said the event aimed at promoting the culture of Cholistan. He said people came from far off places to witness the event.
He said he had been setting stalls at the event for several years.
“I have also sold my wares to some foreigners,” he said proudly.
The festival also featured events such as horse races, a camel show, wrestling and a motorcycle race.
Horse races ended up becoming the biggest attraction. The second most liked event was the camel show, where camels decorated in the traditional Cholistani style, performed dances, which, according to their owners, took years to be trained.
The event concluded with Cholistani singers, paying their musical tribute to the sufi poet.
A medical camp was set up by the Khwaja Fareed Foundation, where people were given free medicines. An eye camp was also set up by the Al Khidmat Foundation.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 8th, 2012.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ