Why a desert city dances when the rain comes
The story: Parvati fasted and prayed for Shiva for so long that, in the version our grandmothers told, she was born again and again before he accepted her. Teej is the day of their reunion.
The goddess: in Rajasthan she is simply Teej Mata, Parvati as a bride, dressed in silk and jewels.
- Teej means
- The third, the lunar date
- Honours
- Parvati's reunion with Shiva
- Kept by
- Married women, and girls hoping to marry
- Colour
- Green, for the new fields
- Sister festival
- Gangaur, in spring
- A women's festival: married women fast and pray for their husbands' long life, and unmarried girls for a good match.
- The rain is the point: in a land where the monsoon can fail, the clouds mean full wells and a millet harvest. The old Teej songs are full of peacocks, clouds and waiting.
- The date: Hariyali Teej falls on the third day of the bright half of Shravan. It moves with the moon, so we confirm it every year.
- The fuller story: our Teej festival guide covers Kajli Teej, the rituals and the meaning. This post is about Jaipur.
The procession, from palace gate to the old maidan
The start: the image of the goddess leaves the Zenani Deorhi, the gateway of the women's palace inside the City Palace, in a palanquin.
Out through Tripolia: the procession passes through Tripolia Gate, the triple-arched gate normally kept for the royal household, into Tripolia Bazaar.
- Leaves
- The Zenani Deorhi of the City Palace
- Through
- Tripolia Gate, Tripolia Bazaar
- Then
- Chhoti Chaupar and Gangauri Bazaar
- Towards
- Chaugan Stadium and Talkatora
- Time
- Late afternoon or evening, set each year
- Into the old city: it turns at Chhoti Chaupar into Gangauri Bazaar and heads for the Chaugan, the old open ground where the city once watched royal sport.
- What passes: decorated camels and horses, brass bands, drummers, folk dancers and men of the old palace establishment in leheriya turbans.
- The moment: when the palanquin appears, the crowd presses forward, the women begin to sing and the coins and flowers start to fall.
- The same road as Gangaur: the spring festival of Gangaur follows almost the same route, so the lanes know the ritual well.
Budhi Teej, the second evening
What it is: Budhi Teej, the elder Teej, on the day after the festival. The procession goes out again along the same route.
Why see both: the first evening is grander and more crowded. The second lets you watch from a different roof, or from street level with your guide.
- If it rains: a storm can delay the start. It still goes out. A shower on Teej is considered a blessing, and nobody minds getting wet.
- Rajasthan Tourism's part: the state usually supports the festival with folk music and dance, and in some years arranges a viewing area for visitors.
- Two nights, two views: if you are in Jaipur for both evenings, we plan one on a family roof and one closer to the Chaugan.
Where to watch, and how to stay dry
A family roof on Tripolia Bazaar: our first choice. We arrange a place with a family we know, above the route, with cushions, an awning and chai.
Opposite Tripolia Gate: roofs facing the gate let you see the goddess emerge, the first and most moving moment.
- Chhoti Chaupar: the square gives a wide view as the procession turns, and its roofs are slightly less crowded.
- Gangauri Bazaar: a narrower street, closer to the faces and the music, good for a second evening.
- Not on the pavement: the crowd is dense and moves suddenly. If you want to be at street level, go with your guide and stand back from the route.
- Dry kit: a compact umbrella, a light rain jacket, a pouch for your phone and sandals that don't mind puddles.
- Coming down: wait on the roof until the street clears. It takes half an hour, and there is no reason to hurry.
The walled city in Teej week
Leheriya everywhere: the wave-dyed cloth of the monsoon, rolled, tied and dyed so colour runs across it in ripples. Johari Bazaar stacks it to the ceiling before Teej. Our leheriya and bandhani page shows how it's made.
Bangles: on Maniharon ka Rasta families shape lac bangles over small fires. Green and gold sell fastest in Teej week.
- Mehndi on the pavements: on the eve of Teej, henna artists sit outside the bazaar shops painting hands in vines, peacocks and swings. Our mehndi page explains how we arrange a session.
- Sindhara: the day before Teej, parents send married daughters baskets of clothes, bangles, henna and sweets. The lanes fill with scooters balancing them.
- Swings: in old haveli courtyards and garden trees, swings go up and women take turns while the others sing.
- Pakoras in the rain: when the clouds open, the kadhais of the snack stalls come out. Fritters and ginger chai under an awning is the taste of the season.
Ghevar, the sweet that tells Jaipur Teej is near
What you'll taste: crisp honeycomb, ghee, then sugar syrup, and on top thick cream or rabri, milk boiled down for hours.
The gift of the season: every sindhara basket carries one, and no family visit in Shravan is complete without a box.
- What it is
- A honeycomb disc of batter fried in ghee
- Toppings
- Plain, malai or rabri
- Season
- The monsoon weeks around Teej
- Best-known shop
- LMB, Johari Bazaar
- Eat it
- The same day
- Where we buy: LMB, the old Laxmi Mishthan Bhandar in Johari Bazaar, and the busy halwais of the walled city. A queue means it was fried that morning.
- Plain to carry, cream to eat: plain ghevar keeps a day or two. Cream versions should be eaten within hours.
- The whole story: our journal on ghevar and Teej explains how it's made and which to order.
Jaipur in the rains, beyond the procession
Amber in the rain
- Why go now: the hills around Amber Fort turn green and Maota Lake below it fills. The ramparts look new-washed.
- Go early: mornings are often bright before the afternoon storms. Stone steps get slippery, so wear shoes with grip.
Nahargarh in cloud
- The view: from Nahargarh Fort on the ridge you watch storms cross the plain and the walled city shine below after rain.
- Locals' outing: on monsoon weekends Jaipur families drive up for the breeze and roasted corn.
Jal Mahal and Man Sagar
- Full water: after good rains Jal Mahal sits in a full lake against green hills, the best it looks all year.
Galtaji's green valley
- Water in the tanks: the temple valley of Galtaji in the eastern hills runs with water, and the monsoon is when it feels most like a sacred spring.
Indoor afternoons
- When it pours: the City Palace museum, the Albert Hall Museum and a long lunch keep the storm hours easy.
- Painted monsoons: look for monsoon scenes in the miniature paintings. Clouds, peacocks and waiting lovers are the season's favourite subjects.
A Teej day in Jaipur, as we plan it
Morning: temple and bazaar
- Temple first: women in green arrive at the old city temples with offerings for the goddess. We visit quietly with your guide.
- Then shopping: leheriya in Johari Bazaar, bangles on Maniharon ka Rasta, and a first wedge of ghevar standing at the counter.
Midday: mehndi and rest
- At your hotel: a mehndi artist paints your hands while lunch is laid out. We can arrange a leheriya sari draped or a turban tied.
- Sleep: the humid afternoon is for resting. The evening is long.
Afternoon: the swings
- A family courtyard: we take you where the swings are up and the women are singing. If they invite you on, accept.
Evening: the procession
- On the roof early: an hour before the start, with chai and an umbrella, above Tripolia Bazaar.
- Wait for the street to clear: then walk out of the old city with your guide to meet your car outside the walls.
Night: dinner and rabri ghevar
- Where: a haveli roof if the sky allows, or your palace hotel's dining room if it doesn't. Ghevar to finish, of course.
What most visitors miss at Teej
The songs: Teej songs are sung in groups on the swings, passed from mother to daughter. Ask your guide to translate one. They speak of rain, a brother bringing gifts and a husband far away.
The sindhara deliveries: the evening before Teej, watch brothers carrying cloth-wrapped baskets to their sisters' in-laws. It is the festival's tenderest custom.
- The palace in the rain: the City Palace's courtyards, wet and empty in the monsoon morning, are a different place from the winter crush.
- Painted clouds: in Rajasthan's miniature paintings the monsoon is the season of love, with dark clouds, lightning and peacocks on palace roofs. Look for them in the palace museum.
- Mitti ki khushboo: the smell of rain on dry earth. Our grandmother said it was the true scent of Teej, better than any attar.
- Peacocks calling: in the gardens of the city's palaces and in the hills, peacocks dance and call before a storm. Listen at dusk.
- Roasted corn: in the monsoon, carts on the ring roads and at Nahargarh roast bhutta, corn on the cob, rubbed with lime, salt and chilli.
Photographing Teej, and keeping your camera dry
From above: a roof over Tripolia Bazaar lets you frame the whole procession, the camels and the crowd of green saris together.
A longer lens: it lets you catch faces in the palanquin party without pushing into the route.
- Wet stone: after a shower, the pink walls and the paving of the old city shine. Shoot just after the rain stops.
- Protect the kit: carry a rain cover or a simple plastic bag and a lens cloth. Humidity fogs lenses when you come out of air-conditioning, so let the camera warm up first.
- People first: ask before photographing women at prayer or on the swings. Our photography tips cover consent and the light.
Respect on a women's festival
Ask before photographing: women at worship, on the swings or in the crowd. Accept a no with a smile.
Don't sit on a swing uninvited: but if you're invited, and you often will be, say yes.
- Wear green: it is a small gesture that gets noticed and loved. Cover shoulders and knees.
- Mind the fast: many married women fast until evening. Don't eat in front of hosts who haven't yet broken theirs.
- Give the procession its road: never step into the route for a photograph.
- Take sweets to a home: if you visit a family, a box of ghevar is the perfect gift.
- Shoes off: at temples and in homes, always.
Planning a monsoon visit for Teej
Where to stay: Samode Haveli puts you inside the walls for the procession. Rambagh Palace is lovely in the rain, with green lawns and peacocks.
The calm retreat: The Oberoi Rajvilas, on the edge of the city, is restful after a crowded evening. Our Jaipur luxury hotels guide compares them.
- Lead time
- A few months, more on a long weekend
- Nights
- Three in Jaipur, covering both evenings
- Weather
- Warm, humid, showers that come and go
- Pack
- Light cotton, umbrella, sandals, something green
- Closed
- Ranthambore's core zones in the monsoon
- Keep plans loose: we leave space for a storm, and never plan a long drive on procession evening.
- Health in the rains: drink bottled or filtered water and eat food hot from the pan. Our health and safety guide has more.
- The month guides: Rajasthan in July and Rajasthan in August explain what the weather is really like.
Where to go after Teej
Bundi for Kajli Teej: about two weeks later, Bundi keeps Kajli Teej with its own procession and fair. It is about four hours south of Jaipur.
Udaipur and the lakes: the lakes fill and the Aravallis go green. Our Monsoon in Mewar journey is built for these weeks.
- Nathdwara for Janmashtami: Krishna's birthday often falls in August, and Janmashtami in Nathdwara is one of the great devotional days of the year.
- Samode in the rain: an hour north of Jaipur, Samode sits among green hills in the monsoon, a quiet first night out of the city.
- Skip the tigers: Ranthambore's core zones close for the monsoon, so we plan wildlife for another season.
- Villages in green: Teej is loveliest in the countryside, where swings hang from village trees. Our village Rajasthan journey can be timed for it.
- Come back in spring: if Teej wins your heart, its sister Gangaur brings the goddess out of the City Palace again in March or April, on almost the same road.
- Fly, don't drive, if it pours: after very heavy rain some rural roads are slow. On a short monsoon trip, a one-hour flight from Jaipur to Udaipur can save a tiring day.
Who will love Teej in Jaipur, and who won't
You'll love it if: you like colour, music and family life, and a summer storm sounds romantic, not inconvenient.
Women travellers: Teej is a festival of women, and women guests are often drawn into the songs and onto the swings.
- Repeat visitors: if you only know Jaipur in winter, the green city is a revelation.
- Photographers: soft monsoon light, wet pink walls and a sea of green saris. Protect your camera from showers.
- Think twice if: you need guaranteed sunshine, tiger safaris or the desert at its best. Come between October and March, and read our best time to visit guide.