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India
- Festivals & Events
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The
Indian calendar is a long procession of
festivals; if you can find yourself in the
right place at the right time, it is possible
to go through your visit with a festival
each day. The harvest festivals of the south,
the immersion of Ganesh in Bombay, the car
Festival of Puri, snake-boat races in Kerala,
Republic Day in Delhi... every region, every
religion has something to celebrate. Below
is a selection of the major ones, but there
are countless others; enquire at local Government
of India Tourist Offices for details.
JANUARY
/ FEBRUARY
-
Sankranti
/ Pongal : Tamil harvest festival.
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Republic
Day : establishment of Republic
1950. 26th January. Grand Military Parade
and Procession of dancers etc. Delhi.
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Vasant
Panchami : Hindu – dedicated
to Saraswati the beautiful Goddess of
Learning. Women wear yellow saris.
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Floating
Festival : Birthday of local 17th
century ruler; elaborately illuminated
barge carrying decorated temple deities
at the Mariamman Teppakulam Pool arnid
chanting hymns.
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Shivaratri
: Solemn worship of Hindu deity,
Lord Shiva. Fasting and chanting. Special
celebrations at Chidambarum, Kalahasti,
Khajuraho, Varanasi and Bombay.
-
 Holi
: Mainly northern, popularly called
the festival of colors. Advent of Spring.
Lively and much throwing of coloured
water and powders. Public Holiday. Mardi
Gras:Mainly three days during lent.
Unique celebrations at this carnival.
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Ramnavami
: Birth of Rama, incarnation of
Vishnu. No processions. Plays and folk
theaters.
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Mahavir
Jayanti : National: Jain festival;
birth of Mahavira, the 24th and last
Tirthankara.
Easter: Good Friday / Easter Sunday
National.
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Kumbh
Mela : The oldest and most important
of the Hindu festivals. It takes place
every three years, at one of the four
great .holy cities; Nasik in Maharashtra,
Ujjain (MP), Prayag (Allahabad) and
Hardwar (both in UP). It is attended
by millions of pilgrims who take a holy
dip in the sacred Ganges River.
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 Baisakhi
: Northern India, West Bengal and
Tamil Nadu; Hindu Solar New Year. Bhangra
dancing. Women wear yellow saris.
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Pooram
: New Moon. Spectactular sight of
large number of elephants carrying ceremonial
umbrellas going round the temple; midnight
fireworks display.
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Id-Ul-Zuha
(Bakrid) : The most celebrated Islamic
festival in India, commemorating the
sacrifice of Abraham.
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Id-Ul-Fitr
(Ramzan Id) : Muslim, National:
Celebration to mark the end of the month
of Ramadan.
Meenakshi Kalyanam: Madurai. Marriage
of Meenakshi with Lord Shiva. Colourful
temple festival. Deities borne by colossal
chariot. Ten day festival.
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Fair
:Urs Ajmer Sharif. Ajmer, 6 days.
Religious cultural and commercial extravaganza
dedicated to the Sufi. Music; no procession.
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Rath
Yatra : Mainly Orissa. Greatest
temple festival in honour of Lord Jagannath
(Lord of the Universe). Three colossal
chariots drawn from Puri temple by thousands
of pilgrims. Similar festivals, on a
smaller scale, take place at Ramnagar
(nr Varanasi), Serampore (nr Calcutta)
and Jagannathpur (nr Ranchi).
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Teej
: Procession of the Goddess Parvati
to welcome monsoon; elephants, camels,
dancers etc. Women wear green saris.
Colourful.
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Raksha
Bandhan : Northern and Western India.
Legendary reenactment, girls tie rakhis
or talismen to men’s wrists. Colourful
build up.
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Naag
Panchami : Mainly Jodphur, Rajasthan
and Maharashtra. Dedicated to the green
thousand-headed mythical serpent called
Sesha. The day is also observed in many
other parts of Western and Eastern India.
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Amarnath
Yatra : Lidder Valley, Kashmir at
full moon. Pilgrims visit the place
where Lord Shiva explained the secret
of salvation to his consort Parvati.
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Independence
Day : Prime Minister delivers address
from Delhi’s Red Fort.
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Janmastami
: National, particularly Agra, Bombay
and Mathura; Lord Krishna’s birthday.
Onam: Kerala’s Harvest Festival;
spectacular snake boat races in many
parts of Kerala.
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Ganesh
Chaturthi : Mainly Pune, Orissa,
Bombay, Madras, dedicated to elephant-headed
God Ganesh. Giant models of the deity
processed and immersed in water. Colourful,
and a particularly worth visiting on
the Day of Immersion at Bombay.
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Dussehra
: The most popular festival in the
country, celebrated in different ways
in different parts of the country. In
the north and particularly in Delhi
(where it is known as Ram Lila), plays
and music recall the life of Rama; in
Kulu, the festival is also very colourful
celebrated. In Bengal and many parts
of Eastern India it is known as Durga
Puja, and in the South as Navaratri.
Fair, Himachal Pradesh: Kulu Valley
to coincide with Dussehra (10 days).
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Gandhi
Jayanti : Mahatmas Gandhi’s
birthday. No processions.
-
 Diwali
National : One of the most lively
andcolourful festivals in India. In
some parts, it marks the start of the
Hindu New Year. In Eastern India, the
goddess Kali is particularly worshipped;
elsewhere, it is Lakshmi, the goddess
of prosperity, who is venerated. Everywhere
there are magnificent illuminations
and fireworks.
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Gurpurab
: Mainly in northern India. Anniversaries
of ten gurus, spiritual teachers or
preceptors of Sikhism. No procession.
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Muharram
: Muslim. Commemoration of Imam
Hussain’s martyrdom. Tiger dancers
lead processions of colourful replicas
of martyr’s tomb. Colourful, particularly
at Lucknow.
Bihar: Largest cattle fair in the world;
1 month Sonepur, Patna; on banks of
the Ganges.
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Pushkar
Mela : Pushkar, near Ajmer, Rajasthan.
Important and colourful. Camel and cattle
fair, attended by Rajputs from miles
around. Camel races and acrobatics etc.
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