Nagji and Nagwanti | A Folk Tale from Rajasthan

The Langas are a group of professional folk musicians in Rajasthan. Leading a life rich in culture, these poor peasants live in a village named Barnawa. Trained to sing thousands of traditional couplets, they live in thatched huts in the middle of sand dunes in the encroaching desert.

The Langas sing their traditional folk songs with a string instrument known as the Kamayacha, a bow instrument called Sarangi, and drums. During cold desert nights, the village folk sits around the Langas to listen to them sing local folklore songs. The final folk song is always the story of Nagji and Nagwanti. A passionate ballad, it follows the theme of tragic love.

Nagji and Nagwanti knew each other from their childhood. They grew up playing together in the fields, splashing in the well, and running here and there all day long. Of all their playful activities, their favorite one was to swing for hours from the branch of the tree with red blossoms.

Nagji grew up to be a handsome young man with broad shoulders and flashing dark eyes. Nagwanti also grew into a beautiful girl with lustrous dark hair. Not even a single day went by without the two meeting under the forest tree or in the fields.

One day, while sitting on the swing under the tree, Nagji realized how much more beautiful Nagwanti looked against the tree’s red blossoms. From that day onward, their friendship became even more special. Both them realized how meaningless their lives were without each other.

Back in those days, child marriages were quite commonplace. Nagwanti had also been betrothed to a farmer from the neighboring village. As Nagwanti was growing up, her father began making the preparations for her wedding.

Nagwanti’s heart didn’t accept the marriage. She believed she belonged to Nagji. When Nagwanti expressed her desire to elope with Nagji, Nagji declined the offer saying that it would bring dishonor to both the families. Nagwanti told Nagji that she would come to see him under the tree on the day of her wedding.

On the day of her wedding, Nagji kept waiting under the forest tree since daybreak. Nagwanti couldn’t leave home on time due to the pre-wedding celebrations. Meanwhile, Nagji couldn’t bear to see his beloved marry another man. Depressed, he climbed up the tree laden with the blood-red flowers. He then stabbed himself with a dagger and committed suicide.

Nagwanti reached the tree and waited for Nagji. However, even after waiting for several hours, there was no sign of him. Suddenly, she thought of climbing up the tree to see if she could look around the woods. As soon as she got to the treetop, she spotted Nagji’s lifeless body there.

Devastated, she pulled the dagger out of Nagji’s lifeless body and plunged it into her heart. United in the eternal bond of love, Nagji and Nagwanti embraced death for each other. To this day, people believe that when the forest trees bloom with the blood-red flowers in March, the couple glows in unison, having finally been united after death.