Every year, in the month of January, thousands of visitors flock to Bikaner, India for the Camel festival. Desert region’s folk dances and music, add on to what is otherwise an exclusive camel affair. Camels fascinate tourists from all over the world with their movements, charm and grace. A spectacle of unusual camel performances: camel races, camel dances, and the bumpy, neck shaking camel rides.
The festival starts with the procession of beautifully decorated camels, a competition for best decorated camel, fur cutting design, camel milking and the best camel hair cut. On the second day, the fleetest camels of the region take part in the camel races.
Photographer Osakabe Yasuo says that camel hair artwork can take up to three years to create. For the first two years, the hair is grown, trimmed and prepped. For competitions, the hair is then trimmed into intricate patterns and dyed for the dramatic effect you see below.
