SSC
The Pattadakal Dance Festival, held at a UNESCO World Heritage Site of Chalukya temples, is organised by:
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Answer: Option C — The Government of Karnataka
Detailed Solution
The Pattadakal Dance Festival is an annual classical dance festival organised by the Government of Karnataka at Pattadakal, in the Bagalkot district of northern Karnataka. It is usually held in January or February and is part of the state's efforts to promote its heritage sites and classical arts.
The festival is held against the backdrop of the magnificent temples of Pattadakal, which provide a beautiful setting for the performances. Leading classical dancers from across India perform Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Odissi, Kuchipudi, Mohiniyattam and other dance forms. The festival aims to celebrate the cultural legacy of the Chalukyas, who were great patrons of art and architecture, and to attract tourists to the region.
Pattadakal was an important city of the Chalukya dynasty of Badami (also called the Early Western Chalukyas), who ruled much of the Deccan from the 6th to the 8th centuries CE. The name means "coronation stone", as the Chalukya kings were crowned there. The group of monuments at Pattadakal, built mainly in the 7th and 8th centuries, includes nine Hindu temples and a Jain sanctuary. The temples are famous for combining the two main styles of Indian temple architecture, the northern (Nagara) style and the southern (Dravida) style, in one place. The most famous is the Virupaksha Temple, built in about 745 CE by Queen Lokamahadevi to celebrate the victory of her husband, King Vikramaditya II, over the Pallavas. Other important temples include the Mallikarjuna, Papanatha and Galaganatha temples. The Group of Monuments at Pattadakal was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.
Nearby are the other Chalukya centres of Badami (famous for its cave temples) and Aihole (often called the "cradle of Indian temple architecture").
Why not the other options?
- ✗The Government of Andhra Pradesh organises festivals such as the Visakha Utsav.
- ✗The Government of Maharashtra organises the Ellora-Ajanta Festival.
- ✗The Government of Tamil Nadu organises the Mamallapuram Dance Festival.
Quick tip
Remember: The Pattadakal Dance Festival = Karnataka and the Chalukya temples, especially the Virupaksha Temple. Pattadakal is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (1987).
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Festivals & Fairs of India — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Festivals & Fairs of India, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers the religious, harvest, tribal and cultural festivals of India, the fairs (melas) held across the country, and the states, communities and seasons linked to them. It also includes festivals listed by UNESCO as intangible cultural heritage, such as Kumbh Mela and Durga Puja in Kolkata. Most questions ask which state celebrates a festival, which tribe it belongs to, or what event it marks. Harvest festivals are especially common: Pongal (Tamil Nadu), Onam (Kerala), Bihu (Assam), Lohri and Baisakhi (Punjab) and Nuakhai (Odisha). Fairs such as the Pushkar camel fair (Rajasthan) and the Sonepur cattle fair (Bihar) are also frequently tested. Revise festivals state by state. Practise the festivals and fairs questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.