India - Udaipur Spring Festival

Ethereal colour views of the magical city of Udaipur during its spring festival celebrations

H.A.N. Barlow was a Political Officer for the British government in the Indian state of Rajputana, now Rajasthan, and an enthusiastic amateur filmmaker. In contrast to his gritty black and white images of India's northerly frontiers, this ethereal record of the spring festival at Udaipur was shot on 8mm Kodachrome colour film. In it we see views of the Residency and its garden; people dressed in their finery assemble on the banks of Lake Pichola, while dancing girls wait to board a launch; Rajput nobles assemble on the landing stage to board the royal barge of the Maharajah; the dancing girls perform; darkness descends and the crowd disperses.