About
A 350-year-old legacy !
Where tradition eumes together with trade, where royalty comes Ingether with heritage and where one of the oldest horse fairs in India becomes the largest celebration of horses, this is the Chetak Festical Sarangkheda.
Chetak Festival Sarangkheda has been one of the oldest horse fairs in the country having been organized for around 350 years. This Festival is the transformed version of Sarangkheda Horse fair an age old rural fair of horses occurs every year at the rural hinterlands of Northern Maharashtra.
A month-long celebration, the festival occurs in a designated site of more than 50 acres on the banks of Tapi River in Maharashtra’s Sarangkheda village in Shahada Taluka of Nandurbar district.
As one of oldest and largest horse fairs in India, this event is an amalgam of trade & traditions, royalty & heritage, agriculture. rural sports, entertainment, fun etc.
Chetak Festival Committee Sarangkheda, a non-profit organization and a governing body organizes this festival in a modified format in order to share this stunning festival with the world.
A 350 year-old-legacy is now purely Celebration of Heritage & Festival of Horses.
Mission
"At the Chetak Festival, we are dedicated to preserving and celebrating India's rich equestrian heritage while fostering cultural unity and community engagement. Our mission is to create an immersive experience that bridges the past and the present, paying homage to the historic rides of legendary gures and highlighting the enduring bond between man and horse. Through vibrant performances, art, cuisine, and shared celebrations, we strive to create an inclusive platform that unites diverse communities, transcends boundaries, and creates lasting memories. Our festival stands as a beacon of tradition, culture, and unity, where history comes to life, and where connections are forged that gallop through generations."
Vision
Our vision is to create an iconic Chetak Festival that revitalizes equestrian heritage, celebrates cultural diversity, and unites communities. We aspire to be a timeless symbol of pride, inspiring generations to appreciate the profound bond between man, horse, and culture. Through immersive experiences and vibrant festivities, we envision a future where the Chetak Festival stands as a beacon of unity and legacy, enriching lives and leaving an enduring legacy.
About Sarangkheda
Cut off from Maharashtra until 1957, the Sarangkheda Village and other villages in the north of the Tapi River were later connected to the rest of the state through the construction of a bridge. Located in the Nandurbar district, 397 kilometres from Mumbai, Sarangkheda was the center of horse trading for centuries together.
It goes back to the time when brave Maratha ruler, Chhatrapati Shivaji bought a few war horses of highest quality from this fair. It was a time when everyone from the Nizams to farmers and traders would throng to Sarangkheda to buy horses. Sarangkheda attracted people from all walks of life to buy horses. In the past, the fair has attracted horse traders and buyers to Sarangkheda from far-flung areas of India and as far as Balochistan and Arabia. The tradition of horse trading has continued to this day, with patrons and horse lovers from across the nation still visiting the village during the festival.
With its close proximity to the Tapi River, the location happened to be an excellent choice for animals that need to be cared for during the fair. The village of Sarangkheda is also known for its Datta Mandir that is almost 100 years old. Special Advantage of Sarangkheda is that its situated on the border of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra
