The Splendid Dasara Celebrations at Brindavan Gardens, Mysore

Dasara or Dussehra is the biggest festival of Mysuru (Mysore). A 10-day long celebration, that includes elephant parades, cultural shows and the illumination of the entire city along with extended illumination of the Mysore Palace.

I had never imagined that I would be able to attend the grand Dasara celebration of Mysore. It was when I reached Mysore a day after Dussehra is when I realised that the celebrations go on for a month in form of Food festivals, music festivals and exhibitions.

Brindavan Gardens resides next to the Krishna Raja Sagara Dam also known as KRS Dam claims to be one of the best terrace gardens in the world. This Mughal style garden takes its inspiration from the famous Shalimar Bagh of Kashmir. The garden has innumerable fountains that dance on Bollywood and Tollywood tunes in the evening. This place is a visual delight during the night as the entire garden is beautifully illuminated.

Here are 5 things that we did that made our night memorable at the Brindavan Gardens.

Binge Eating

The market outside the main gate of the Brindavan Gardens is flooded with hundreds of eateries. Before heading to the garden complex, we filled ourselves with freshly fried Green Chilli and Potato fritters along with hot tea. By the time we came out, we were quite hungry. To serve our hunger we had the famous fried fish, which is widely available in the main market.

Flower Exhibition

The flower exhibition was the first thing that came on our way to the main terrace garden. The greenhouse had a variety of flowers moulded beautifully into different shapes.

Musical Fountains

The main garden had a different aura. People were dancing, posing and enjoying every bit of the place. Every tree was beautifully illuminated and the fountains were dancing to the tunes. Every step that we walked was worth the view.

Concert

Local artists were performing on the highest platform of the terrace garden. It looked no less than a South Indian Sunburn Festival. The twist came when the artists chose to sing Bollywood tracks for us. Honestly, we enjoyed every bit of attention that we got!

Boating on Cauvery River

Lastly, giving this beautiful evening a final touch we decided to boat across the Cauvery river. The wind was soothing and the water was calm. This place had everything to bind us to its charm.

If you find yourself in Mysore during or after Dussehra, then do visit this magical place to add some extra spice to your trip.