"JAISALMER AYO: GATEWAY OF THE GYPSIES
Full documentary is now available on VOD
https://vimeo.com/ondemand/gypsiesfro... recorded during the shooting of the documentary film “Jaisalmer Ayo! Gateway of the Gypsies”.
These once nomadic musicians belong to the community of Manganiars. They are renowned as highly skilled folk musicians of Rajasthan. Their songs are passed on from generation to generation as a form of an oral history of the Thar Desert. They sing songs about Alexander the Great, about the local Maharajas and past battles in the region. The Manganiars have survived for centuries on the patronage of wealthy merchants in caravan towns, particularly Jaisalmer and Barmer.