The Pushkar Fair, or Pushkar ka Mela, is the annual five-day camel fair, held in the town of Pushkar in the state of Rajasthan, India. The fair is regarded as the world’s largest camel fair involving the buying and selling of thousands of camels. Villagers and tribesmen from all over North and North-Western India travel hundreds of miles on foot and carts, with their camels and livestock just to attend this fair. Everyone travels to the sleepy town with some hope in their hearts: hopes of profit and a slightly better living for a few days. Some make big fortunes, some don’t. But still, it’s all about having some fun at the fair: a break from their usual harsh life in the arid terrains of India. The prices for the camels range from Rs. 15,000 to Rs. 1,50,000. In India’s countryside, the four-legged animal — the ship of the desert — still calls the shots. The Pushkar Fair is all about celebration of life. And this series of photographs is about the people who bring alive the sleepy town of Pushkar during this annual event.

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Soham Gupta is a documentary photographer based in Calcutta, India. Since 2009, his works have been exhibited thrice: in Calcutta, 2011 Format Festival UK and Paris. Currently, he is pursuing his Diploma in Photojournalism from Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines.

More at his blog: http://sohamgupta.wordpress.com/