More than 100 photographs shot by 23 photographers are on display in a photo exhibition on fairs, festivals and rituals of India at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath in Bengaluru from December 19-22.

The exhibition showcases the colour and pomp of festivals from across India. It includes the works of 23 culture enthusiasts, including photojournalists, amateur and hobby photographers. 

It has photographs from the Pushkar Fair, and traditions like Theyyam in Kerala, Holi in Mathura, Bonalu celebration in Telangana, Dussehra celebrations in Mysore and Pooram celebrations in Thrissur, Kambala races in coastal Karnataka, among others. 

Jallikkattu in Madurai by Udaya Tejaswi Urs

The exhibition has been organised by Essen Communications, which encouraged people to send in entries between November 1 and November 30. The three best entries were selected - Dheeraj Rajpal M for his picture, ‘Leap of Faith’ at a Theyyam performance in Kannur,  Shreenivas Yenni for his picture, ‘Devotees dance at the Palkhi festival in Pandharpur’ in Maharashtra, and Uday Tejaswi Urs for his picture, ‘Downunder ‘ from Jallikattu in Madurai.

"We did not consider it a competition but we decided to reward the three best entries since it will encourage photographers. From the photos we received, we will be displaying more than hundred photographs," said Susheela Nair, a travel writer, photographer and director of Essen Communications.

Devotees dancing at the Phalki Festival in Pandharapur by Shreenivas Yenni

The photographs are displayed at the exhibition inaugurated at 5 pm on Thursday. It has the works of Anita Mysore, Bhaskar Ghosh, Deepak, Divya Mohta, Dheeraj Rajpal, Dr. Akter Husain, Dr. Dinesh Kaushik, Harsh Patel, Jyothy Karat, Mohan Kumar BS, Muthu Krishna,  Naveena Mohan, Padmanabha KG, Prasad BS, Sanjay Shenoy, Shreeniwas Yenni, Srinivasan K.V., Sridhar VS, Susheela Nair, Udaya Tejaswi Urs, Usha S., Vidyasagar and Vikas Vinay Kalgi.