Visitors to Mysuru palace on Tuesday witnessed another royal tradition of the bygone era come alive, with caparisoned elephants, camels, bulls and ‘courtiers’ participating in a royal procession led by Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar, the scion of the erstwhile royal family, astride a silver chariot.
Taken out just before the start of the Jamboo Savari, the procession, marking the culmination of the private Dasara festivities of the family, was a throwback to the days of the Maharajas. Soon after the conclusion of the Vajramushti Kalaga, a centuries-old traditional wrestling contest held in the palace courtyard, Yaduveer ascended the silver chariot, drawn by caparisoned bulls and followed by camels, elephants and traditionally dressed royal family members.
A golden palanquin accompanying the procession carried the ayudha (weapons), according to traditions, even as Yaduveer reached Bhuvaneshwari temple on the palace premises in the silver chariot and offered ‘shammi puja’.
A BMW belonging to the family also trailed the procession this year, returning to the palace in full regalia after the completion of rituals, paving the way for the start of Jamboo Savari. The return lap of the procession is also reckoned to be a “victory march”.
Slice of royal life
Thousands of spectators, who had turned up on the palace premises early to catch the Jamboo Savari, got a chance to savour a slice of the royal orient. Astride the silver chariot, Yaduveer waved at the spectators.
The royal procession also draws curtains on the private Dasara celebrated by the royal family, during which the scion ascends the golden throne and holds a private or khasgi durbar. The private durbar, held on all 11 days of the festival, too threw up images of the bygone era when the Maharajas were at the helm in the princely state of Mysore.
