Kalash Festival Tour 2023-24 | Chilam Joshi / Uchal & Choimus in pakistan

Kalash Festival Tours

kalash festivals in pakistan is a majestic valley of a small group of people which lies on the eastern range of Hindu Kush, embodied. The three narrow valleys of Bumburet, Rumbur, and Birir chitral, located in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province of Pakistan. It believes that the Kalash people are the last representatives of Kafiristan. Which extended from the Hindu Kush mountain range of the eastern part of Afghanistan. The number of kalash has decreased so much so that only around 4000 people are residing in the valleys. Renowned linguist Richard Strand holds the perspective that the Kalash people follow an ancient variant of Hinduism. This religious practice started locally and influenced by nearby pre-Islamic Nuristan. The kalash festivals in pakistan celebrate a number of festivals all year round. The Four predominant festivals are as follows: 

1)       Zhoshi (Chilam Joshi) Spring Festival (May 13—16)

The annual Kalash religious festival, known as the Spring Kalash festival in Pakistan, occurs from May 13th to May 16th in three valleys. The purpose of celebrating this festival is to pray to God for blessings the New Year. With prosperity, happiness, good health, better crops production, increase in dairy products, increase in animal herds, increase in fruits, increase in honey production, etc. The main theme of this festival is to pray the deity for blessing them with economic uplift, better life conditions and prosperity. This festival, all the Kalash women and men perform the rites of dancing, singing, followed by sumptuous dinners. All of them wear new dresses and look full of life and happiness. Women decorate their houses and collect milk from the cattle. In this event one-year-old babies and their mothers are purified in this kalash festivals in pakistan.

2)      UCHAW (UCHAL) Festival (August 20–21)

The Kalash community celebrates the summer festival known as Uchaw (Uchal). This particular kalash festivals in pakistan is exclusively observed in the Kalash valleys of Mumuret (Bumborate) and Rukmu (Rumboor). The main purpose of celebrating this festival, Uchaw (Uchal), is to pray to God. To offer thank for blessing prosperity, good health, happiness, good crops and good dairy products in high pastures. After that, the Kalash people gather in Ghriee (Charsoo) dance and sing in the Charsoo, locally called Ghriee. The Kalash festival start to harvest the maize crops, collect grapes, walnuts and other fruits from their fields and orchards. The people of Kalash valley celebrate the famous annual harvesting festival Uchal with singing, dancing and paying homage to nature for blessing them with barley and wheat harvest season. Special foods are cheese, buttermilk and corn bread, are prepared for the event. Women in traditional dresses performed dances.

3)      Phool Festival (mid-October)

The Autumn Festival is an annual colorful two-day festival in Birir valley celebrated with high spirit and zeal. The festival marks the reaping of grapes and walnuts. The people sing songs and perform traditional dances throughout the two-day festival.

4)      Chaumas Festival (December 7–22)

The important Kalash festival is the Chawmos (cawmos, ghona chawmos yat, khowar “chitrimas” from caturmasya, CDIAL 4742). Kalash people celebrated for two weeks in winter. At the beginning of the month, chawmos mastruk. It mark end of the year’s fieldwork and harvest, which involves much music, dancing in group, and the sacrifice of many goats. It honors the god Balimain, who visits from the mythical land Tsyam during the feast. Food sacrifices are made at Jeshtak shrines for the ancestors.

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