Chandigarh – Culture and Tradition

Chandigarh its name “The City Beautiful” says it all, it is one of the cleanest and most well-developed cities in India.

Chandigarh serves as the capital of two states Haryana and Punjab and is a union territory in India that is under the direct control of the Central Government. Chandigarh is located at the foothills of Shivalik and has Punjab in the north and Haryana in the east.

The name Chandigarh is formed from the goddess name Chandi and Garh means a fortress. It is derived from the Hindu goddess ancient temple Chandi Mandir which is located in Panchkula. Chandigarh is also referred to as “The city beautiful” because of the beautiful architecture and urban design used to build it.

Chandigarh is the master plan of a Swiss-French Architect, Le Corbusier. Le Corbusier conceived the master plan of Chandigarh as analogous to the human body, with a clearly defined head (the Capitol Complex, Sector 1), heart (the City Centre, Sector 17), lungs (the leisure valley, innumerable open spaces, and sector greens), the intellect (the cultural and educational institutions), the circulatory system (the network of roads, the 7 Vs) and the viscera (the Industrial Areas).  Chandigarh besides being beautiful is also the cleanest city in India based on a National Government study. Mohali, Panchkula, and Chandigarh are referred to as Tri-city.

History

Chandigarh came into the limelight during the partition in 1947. The early capital of Punjab was Lahore which falls in Pakistan Territory, but after partition, the province of Punjab was split between East Punjab in India and West Punjab in Pakistan. Divided East Punjab needed new capital and three regions Ludhiana, Ambala, and Chandigarh were nominated for the same. But Chandigarh was chosen as it was farthest from the Pakistan border.

The Government of Punjab in 1949 tasked an American planner and architect Albert Mayer to design the new city Chandigarh and later on Le Corbusier was appointed for the same. Le Corbusier designed many administration buildings including the High Court, the Palace of Assembly, and the Secteriate building, and also designed the general layout plan of the city dividing it into sectors.

In November 1966, a newly formed state of Haryana was carved out from East Punjab. The majority of people living there were speaking Haryanavi so the eastern portion of East Punjab was called Haryana and while the western portion of East Punjab retains all the Punjabi-speaking majority so-called Punjab.

Chandigarh was located at the border of both the states and both of them try to incorporate Chandigarh into their territory. However, the city Chandigarh was declared a union territory that now serves as the capital of both states.

Culture

The vibrant culture of Chandigarh is influenced by the neighboring states mainly Haryana and Punjab followed by Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar.

The rich and fertile land of Chandigarh is a meeting ground for different people and races, so the tradition and culture of the city is a mixture of the various culture of India.

There are numerous temples, mosques, shrines, and Bhawan located throughout the city where one can easily participate in any type of religious activity.

Chandigarh houses many Central Govt. institutions, branches of almost every bank, army, and air forces bases where people from every part of India are settled here.

The blending of various cultural aspects is also reflected in the architectural styles and shrines of the city. While Chandigarh is majorly occupied by Sikh Jat who is mostly agriculturist. Khatris and Aroras are also two major communities in the city.

Language

The people of Chandigarh speak Hindi and Punjabi, while Haryanavi and English are also spoken languages in the state. English is the official language of Chandigarh.

Festivals

Chandigarh celebrates several festivals that are uniquely their own.

Festival of Gardens – The festival of gardens also called as Rose Festival is a three-day festival organized in the last week of February when the rose plants in the garden are at their peak of bloom.

Basant Panchami – Basant Panchami is a very popular seasonal fair and marks the arrival of the spring season. The yellow mustard in the fields brings a gorgeous golden yellow glow to the area. Kite flying is a popular event during the occasion.

Baisakhi – Baisakhi is a harvest festival and celebrated with great pomp in Chandigarh. This is the time when farmers gather their harvest after a year-long hard work, so they celebrate it with full enthusiasm.

Dusshera Festival – Dusshera Festival is celebrated in a big way with effigies of Ravan, Kumbkaran, and Meghnath being burnt at a number of places in the city.

Chandigarh Carnival – Chandigarh carnival is a three-day event held in the second week of November. It is a time when students in the city show their talents and have fun.

Other popular festivals in the city are Lohri, Diwali, Rakhi, Muktsar fair, Mango festival, and Teej.

Costumes

Chandigarh has a mixture of various traditions and cultures that are reflected in their costumes too. However, nowadays people like to wear modern outfits. Western outfits are the most popular among youngsters they like to wear jeans, skirts, tops, and t-shirts rather than traditional dresses.

Traditionally dress for women of Chandigarh is Kurta Salwar, Patiala suits are also very common in the region. Saris are worn very less as compared to other parts of India, only on special occasions, do people like to flaunt expensive saris. However, Salwar Kurta remains the all-time favorite dress among ladies.

Among men, the traditional dress is kurta-Pajama and Punjabi Dhoti and Kurta, but men in Chandigarh are seen with their normal dress or pant shirt or t-shirt.

Punjabi juti is also traditional footwear in Chandigarh and is called the footwear queen.

Suggested Read: Traditional Dresses Of Indian States

Art and Crafts

Arts and Crafts as a phrase means decorative designs and handicrafts. Chandigarh has distinguished traditions that people have maintained.

Jewelry – The design of jewelry and the motifs carved on them have sun, moon and various god and goddess images engraved, but after the arrival of Muslims they replace them with floral motifs.

Phulkari Work – Chandigarh folk artwork has beautiful phulkaris which have colorful embroidery and knitting, Phulkaris whole cloth is covered with close embroidery.

While it is a custom for parents to give hand-embroidered clothes to girls in their marriage.

Other art and crafts that are common are Handfans, Needlework, Weaving of Durries, Plastering the walls, Woodwork, and Pottery.

Cuisines

Punjabi Food is very popular, and when it comes to Chandigarh cuisine it comprises only Punjabi food. The staple of Chandigarh food is tandoori roti, naan, and parathas served with Dal Makhani, Chicken curry, or Butter Chicken.

The main feature of Punjabi food is a lot of butter in food and food served with Punjab-di-Lassi. While Makki di Roti and Sarson ka saag is a popular dish in Punjab, various type of Chicken is also famous in Punjab.

In Chandigarh people like eating outside a lot so you can find various restaurants and dhabas running full.

For Dal Makhani you can go to Golconda Restaurant in Sector 32 Chandigarh, for Chicken curry you will love at Pal dhaba Sector 28 Chandigarh, The favorite Butter Chicken is in Metro Hotel Sector 43 Chandigarh,

Among these top food soya champ, Pav Bhaji, Amritsari Kulcha, Channa Bhatura, Cheese Naan with gravy, and Kadai Paneer are very famous.

Suggested Read: Famous Food Of Indian States

Tourism

Chandigarh is one of the modern, youngest, and most systematic cities in India rightfully called “The City Beautiful“

Famous places for tourism in Chandigarh are:

• Rock Garden – The Unique garden consists of various art objects made by using industrial waste.
• Sukhna Lake – This beautiful lake is in the foothills of the Shivalik range and serves as a famous tourist spot in Chandigarh.
• Rose Garden – Zakir Hussain Rose Garden is 30 acres of park with over 50,000 rose bushes and a must-place to visit in Chandigarh.
• Government Museum and Art Gallery
• ChattBir Zoo
• Fateh Burj
• International Dolls Museum