India is a land of varied cultures and traditions. Like a splendid art piece made with different beautiful colors is a subject of appreciation, similar Indian culture which is a mish-mash of lots and lots of sub-cultures, communities, religions and castes is something that is admired all over the world. What followed is that the global community has applauded the cultural heritage of India since the olden times and it continues to be the case now too.
Today in this post we throw light on different facets of Indian cultural heritage that have attracted tourists and explorers from across the national borders to come and take a look at it in person:
Confluence of various religions: India has been termed as the concourse point of people having various religious identities. Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, Christians, Sikhs, Parsis etc. live here harmoniously, in cooperation with each other. If we look at the facts, India is a Hindu dominated nation, but 14.6% of total population following Islam which is an overwhelming number. This signifies the religious tolerance and freedom that is practiced all over the nation.
Indian dances: Performing arts community globally has seen Indian dances to represent great cultural heritage of the era gone by- be they classical or folk ones. Bharatnatyam of Tamil Nadu, Kathak of North India, Odissi of Odisha state are some famous classical dance forms, whereas in the folk category the fairly popular ones are Garba of Gujarat, Bhangra of Punjab, Bihu of Assam, Kalbeliya of Rajasthan. One interesting fact about dance in India is that some folk dances are performed by the local people of the region while celebrating good harvest.
Music: Indian music like dances has folk and classical genres with pop culture entering the arena in the recent era of the 20th Century. Boasting of being the birth place of Hindustani and Carnatic music, India possesses musical maestros in these two categories who perform regularly on the international platform. Also, some internationally acclaimed instrumentalists belong to India. Folk music of India is equally appreciable as it is the expression of the local people in different areas of the nation.
Architecture: Standing as the remnant of great architectural prowess of India, there are various monuments which figure among the most visited tourist destinations of the world, for instance the Taj Mahal which is also one of the ‘seven wonders of the world’. Of the many styles employed by architects in India, Dravidian in South, British and Mughal in North are the most celebrated and notable ones.
Gastronomical paradise: India is truly a gastronomical paradise. Everything ranging from the spicy-taste buds tingling street food of Delhi, sweets of Bengal, Mughlai food of Agra, snacks of Gujarat and yummy South Indian delicacies are delights! Tourists from around the world and within India never miss out on local cuisine while travelling. Such is the popularity of Indian food that there are dedicated shows in which the host sets out on a food exploration in India to bring out the culinary practices of different regions.