Shilpgram (Entry Fee, Timings, History, Best Time to Visit)

HIstory

The Shilpgram is an ideal place to interact and explore the artistic fervor of the Indian culture. It is a place where history, culture, and heritage are bound together to offer a ravishing image of glorious Indian past. Rajiv Gandhi inaugurated Shilpgram in the year 1989. The place is situated in the old countryside of Udaipur to give an unbiased portrayal of rural life of artisans. The Shilpgram festival conducted on the last ten days around the year end, is an age-old tradition. The artisans and performers flock here from all over to country to showcase their talent and high spirits.

Things to do at Shilpgram

Shilpgram has a plethora of things to do, view, and enjoy. This ten-day festival offers an unforgettable glimpse of rural life of different western states of India with the help of artworks, dances, songs, stunts, and dramas. These artistic wonders not only entertain the viewers but also give a quick insight into the cultures. You can enjoy the vibrant atmosphere of Shilpgram by becoming a part of the crowd.

• You can dance to the local beats, taste local foods, look around at the breathtaking stunts like balancing on the ropes, swinging, walking on the pans.
• You can see art exhibitions; interact with the carpenters, potters, blacksmiths, weavers, needleworkers, and all the other occupational dwellers to learn about their struggles, successes, and failures. If you love hearing stories, this is the best thing to do.
• You can have a brief look at the tremendous artistic wonders in the form of mirror and beadwork, weaving, pottery, and embroidery. These are housed in the seven different huts from Gujarat. The intricately carved hut made up of wood belongs to the Gandhinagar region of Gujarat. • The five shacks of Goa showcase the house of a fisherman and the potter’s hut along with the grass weavers and cane. • The Maharashtra hut presents marvelous wall paintings, an ancient and traditional lost-wax casting work, leather slippers and dokras, and many more. • If you wish to get a more profound knowledge of art and craft skills, you can attend the workshops and camps held at Shilpgram. You can also learn and observe the art of designing and decorating metal, terracotta, textile, wooden, and bamboo artifacts. • If you have a knack for hoarding intricate pieces of arts, places like Shilpgram are just for you. You can buy some of the most incredible pieces of furniture, glass-works, exquisitely hand-spun and embroidered clothing, cute trinkets, jewelry, and stunning handicrafts.
• Along with rural workers, the contemporary urban visual artists, potters, designers and ceramists come together in Shilpgram to create marvelous pieces of art to be put in exhibitions every day.

Things to remember while visiting Shilpgram

• Please put on your comfortable walking shoes as the place is spread over 70 acres.
• It would be best if you carry a water bottle as it takes hours to explore the Shilpgram.
• You can bring your camera as photography is allowed at no extra cost.

How to reach

By Flight :- The Maharana Pratap Airport is located 23.3 Km away from Shilpgram. Once you are out of the airport, you can take a private cab or use taxi service to reach your location.

By Train :- The Udaipur railway station is located 2.4 Km away from Shilpgram. You can take a cab or an auto-rickshaw from the station to reach Shilpgram.

By Public Transport :- There is plenty of deluxe and non-deluxe buses available to and from Udaipur. The State-run buses are the best option as they are both safe and comfortable.