Mysuru: Religious rituals are the main aspects of any temple annual fair or jathre. But, here, in a place named Rammanahalli near Mysuru, the ‘drag queens’ steal the show!

Bizarre, but true, the men of the village dress up like women and dance in frolic as part of the annual fair. The fair is held once in two years in honour of Goddesses Maramma and Lashmideviyamma.

The temple fair started on March 25 and will go on till March 27. The fair is held for three days and while the men dressed up like women dance on the streets of Hanchya village on the first day, on the second day men from Rammanahalli follow the custom. On day-3 the people of both the village come together to perform various rituals of Goddess Maramma at the temple.

However, more than the religious rituals, what steals the show is the dance of the ‘drag queens’. In the temple premises, thousands of men come together in female attire and make-up and dance their hearts out for over six hours.

Though many dress up as mythological characters or in some other bizarre theme, the men in women’s clothes become the most loved characters.
All in all, the temple fair becomes a good comic relief for thousands of onlookers who throng to the temple to have glimpses of these ‘beauties’.