Selfie queen cow Shradha, dancing camels Sonu-monu steal the show
ROHTAK: Thousands gathered at Jhajjar, a town situated in the hinterland of Haryana, to click selfies and pose with the showstoppers of a different kind of a fashion show. When Shradha, Laxmi, Heera, Shanti and Sonumonu walked on the ramp, the enthusiastic public whistled at their every step.
After all, the site of cows, bulls and camels showcasing their beauties in a fashion parade is not seen every day. All this happened at the Haryana livestock fair being organised at Jhajjar police lines as part of the state’s golden jubilee celebrations.
To promote desi breeds of farm animals, the state is generously doling out prizes to the tune of Rs 9 crore every year in such events.
The fair started on Friday, when thousands of farmers from across Haryana registered their animals for various beauty and milk-yielding contests.
An expert panel from the animal husbandry department judged these animals based on the ideal features of their breeds, after which only a handful were selected to walk the ramp with their owners.
They included Murrah breed bull Heera, Tharparpkar cow Dhawal, Murrah buffalo Laxmi and Marwari horse Sultan.
While cows seemed to be not much interested in the fashion parade, bulls wanted all the attention as they pushed their fellow models to get maximum space on the red carpet.
A pair of camels, Sonu-monu from Charkhi Dadri, stole the show with their dancing catwalk. Their owner Sombir had been teaching them dance for long. Karnal’s desi cow Shradha was awarded the title of ‘selfie queen cow’ after Haryana minister OP Dhankar and speaker Kanwar Pal got up from their seats to get clicked her while she was walking on the ramp. Shradha was earlier the poster cow to represent Haryana.
Dhankar said these animals are as big as Bollywood actresses
Katrina Kaif and Mallika Shehrawat in terms of their celebrity appeal. “When the pics and videos of their catwalk will go viral, people will love them more than Bollywood heroines,” he said.
The prizes to the winners will be given on Sunday, the concluding day of the fair.