On the lawns of Vadodara’s Luxmi Vilas Palace, the circle of garba has widened. Where once heritage carried the weight of exclusivity, today it holds space for everyone—including the LGBTQ+ community.
Every Navratri, Radhikaraje Gaekwad of the erstwhile Baroda royal family opens up the palace gates for the Luxmi Vilas Palace Heritage Garba. This isn't your regular flashy, Bollywood spectacle one might find in Ahmedabad or Surat. Here, the music is live, the feet are bare on the grass, and the songs, personally chosen by Radhikaraje, celebrate the feminine divine. It is a return to roots. And yet, it is also a leap forward.
Radhikaraje is a heritage conservationist and also an advocate for women’s rights and the queer community. She has transformed this festival into one of the most inclusive cultural spaces in Gujarat. When her COVID relief work brought her into closer contact with LGBTQ+ groups, she began inviting them into this sacred circle of dance. The result is a garba where difference dissolves, where a fine arts professor can embody Radha, where artists like Narthaki Natraj and Rani Ko-HE-Nur twirl without judgment, and where the queer community can simply belong.
It matters. In a state where tradition is often guarded fiercely, here is an example of heritage not as a barricade but as an embrace. The symbolism could not be stronger: garba is a circle, with no hierarchy, no exclusion—only rhythm, energy, and devotion. By opening that circle wider, Radhikaraje has turned culture itself into activism.
This year’s theme asks participants to imagine an “ideal world for women.” Last year it was violence against women. The palace lawns, once a marker of power, are now a stage for questions that demand answers.
Garba has always been about more than dance. In Vadodara, it is now about pride, safety, and the possibility of a truly shared tradition.
For more updates, join/follow our WhatsApp, Telegram and YouTube channels.