How holy 'n' hip blends in Pushkar

Pushkar: Pushkar today is much more than Lord Brahma's valley. The holy and the hip now go hand in hand in the temple town.

As Royal Enfield motorbikes roll past, tourists drag, shop and let their hair down in the town.

The streets are filled with a thousand things the tourists love to do buy. There are artifacts, jewellery, handicrafts, psychedelic paintings which can be learnt and playing the Didgeridoo throughout the day, makes it a paradise for all.

And if its Israeli street food that you fancy, the Lafa and the Khatleem, then Pushkar is the place to be.

“The food is incredible because you can get any kind of food here, which is really awesome. And very interesting, I didn't expect to get a variety of international food here,” a tourist, Sherry said.

However, the food isn't the only surprise. For bookworms, there are popular paperbacks, fiction and philosophy, the mystic India variety to Kafka, which is fascinating.

And if music is your calling, the temple town also offers a wide range of music from folk to country to hard rock. They are all stacked in tiny shops to be sold, resold and then sold again.

Tourists struggle as they take on Rajasthani men in a tug-of-war at the Pushkar Fair.

For those willing to experiment with their wardrobe, there are Chinese trousers, spaghetti straps and ethnic t-shirts, which are definitely a must have.

"They're wild but beautiful and that's a compliment,” another tourist, Doris said.

So as everything wraps up on the last day of the fair on Sunday, the holy town sits pretty in the tiny valley bustling with cosmopolitan flavours. And with its economy hinging on tourism, the residents can’t wait for the town to come alive again for the annual fair next year.

(With Inputs from Nandini Sircar)