The sideshow at Alsisar
The Rajasthan village comes alive in more ways than one as it hosts its annual music festival
1/9
Age: 18
Studying in class 12, and a luggage porter at the festival
“I love that this festival happens because the rest of the year is so boring… I charge ₹100 for a bag. I end up making ₹1,000-2,000 per day. It’s good pocket money.”
2/9
Age: 20
Garbage collector
Kishan is from Kade village in Rajasthan’s Jhunjhunu district, and makes ₹600 per day for a 12-hour shift.
“Raunak achhi lagti hai [I like that this place is so lively]. Being here breaks the monotony of life, but I don’t like the fact that I have to work here to be a part of this.”
3/9
Age: 22, 20
Tender coconut seller
Raju sells tender coconut water in Jaipur all year long for ₹30-40. At the festival he sells it for ₹100-150 each, making ₹20,000-30,000 in three days. Usually, it would take him about a month to make the same amount in Jaipur.
“Someone from the festival team lives in Jaipur and buys coconut water from me. He asked me if I would like to sell coconuts here, and make some money, so I started a stall in Alsisar.”
4/9
Age: 25,47
Security guards
Both are farmers from Bharatpur in Rajasthan. They work on their own land and grow wheat, pulses, mustard and other crops, and claim to have a comfortable life there. At the festival they work for a salary of ₹600 per day for a 24-hour shift.
“This is so different from where we live. We come here for entertainment. Gaon mein kya dekhne ko milta hai [We don’t get to see anything in our village].”
5/9
Age: 17
Class 11 student in Haryana; in-charge of renting out the parking space and rooms at his cousin’s house in Alsisar
Although Rahul did not disclose the rent of the rooms, he said the parking space is for ₹1,000 per car for three days. Additional rooms were built in the house after the festival started taking place in Alsisar, with the objective of renting them out. Rahul’s cousin, and the owner of the house, lives in Singapore. Hence Rahul has come from Haryana to take care of the business. It was his first time at the festival.
“I think the festival is okay. I see a lot of people all day, it’s fun.”
6/9
Age: 23
Manages a homestay, which her family owns
Priyanka lives in Gurugram where she’s studying French to fulfil her dream of living in France some day. She comes to Alsisar during the festival to help her family manage their homestay. A room here costs ₹4,000 per night, and their special home-cooked Rajasthani thali costs ₹300.
“We end up earning more in these three days than we do in an entire year.”
7/9
Age: 20
Chauhan’s stall, Bikaner Food Stall, which is outside the official festival site, sells chocolates, chips, soft drinks and other packed snacks that are all priced higher than the MRP. His masala chai costs ₹20, while bread-omelette sells for ₹100. While this is expensive, it is much cheaper than the price of food within the festival site, Chauhan says.
“I heard about this (festival) from a friend and so I decided to come here from Gurugram, and run this stall along with Mahendra Singh Bhati, an Alsisar resident. We paid ₹15,000 for three days as rent for the land on which the stall has been erected.”
8/9
Age: 14
A class 9 student, she sells water and Pepsi, for ₹50 each, outside one of the festival entrances. This helps her earn about ₹8,000-9,000 in three days. She manages the shop with the help of her family. At about 2.30 am, she was alone at her shop, dancing to the loud music coming from one of the stages inside the palace, and seemed happy.
“Everyone in Alsisar looks forward to this festival. I love talking to the people who come here. They wear such nice clothes. I don’t understand this music, but I like it.”
9/9
Age: 22
MBA student from Jaipur, and owner of Sujit Kirana Store
“I come here for these three days of the year. I really like the festival. It lifts the mood and vibe of Alsisar. We get to earn money by working for 24 hours in these three days. The amount we earn in three days is what we earn in a year. We have rooms to rent, too, for ₹4,000 a night. For the store, we order extra stock during the festival; cigarettes, water and Coke sell the most."
