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Calendar
Festival Calendar
Ceremonies, rituals, delicious food, bright lights and traditional art are an
integral part of Indian festivals. Skim through the calendar for an exhaustive
list of the numerous festivals of India
JANUARY/ FEBRUARY
The Great
Elephant March at Kerala
International
Kite Festival at Ahmedabad in Gujarat
Bikaner
Festival at Rajasthan
Pongal:
Mainly in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnatka (Tamil Harvest Festival)
Republic
Day: 26th January (Grand Military Parade and Procession of dancers etc.-Delhi).
Vasant
Panchmi : National (Mainly in the Eastern region): Hindu- dedicated to Saraswati
the beautiful Goddess of Learning. (Women wear yellow saris).
Floating
festival: Madurai: Birthday of local 17th ruler; elaborately illuminated barge
carrying decorated temple deities at the Mariamman Teppakulam Pool amid chanting
hymns.
FEBRUARY
/ MARCH
Surajkund
Crafts Mela (Surajkund, near Delhi)
International
Yoga Week (Rishikesh)
Desert
Festival (Jaisalmer, Rajasthan)
Taj Mahotsav
(Agra, UP)
Nagaur
Fair (Nagaur, Rajasthan)
Deccan
Festival (Andhra Pradesh)
Shivratri:
National: Solemn worship of Hindu deity, Lord Shiva. Fasting and chanting.
Special celebrations at Chidambaram, Kalahasti, Khajuraho, Varanasi and Bombay.
Holi:
Mainly northern, popularly called the festival of colours. Advent of Spring.
Lively and much throwing of coloured water and powders. (Public Holiday).
Mardi
Gras: Goa: Mainly three days during lent. Unique celebrations at this carnival.
Ramnavmi:
National: (birth of Rama, incarnation of Vishnu). No processions,. Plays and
folk theatres.
MARCH
/ APRIL
Khajuraho
Dance Festival (Khajuraho, Orissa)
Kumbh
Mela: The oldest and most important of the Hindu festivals. It takes place
very 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 takes a holy dip in the sacred Ganges River.
Mahavir
Jayanti: National: Jain festival; birth of Mahavira, the 24th and last Tirthankara.
Easter:
Good Friday /Easter Sunday National.
APRIL
/ MAY
Baisakhi:
Northern India, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu; Hindu Solar New Year. Bhangra
dancing. Women wear yellow saris.
Pooram:
Trichur: New Moon. Spectacular sight of large number of elephants carrying
ceremonial umbrellas going round the temple; midnight firework display.
Id-Ul-Zuha:
(Bakri id): Muslim, National: the most celebrated Islamic festival in India,
commemorating the sacrifice of Abraham.
Id-Ul-firt
(Ramzan Id): Muslim, National: Celebration to mark the end of the holy month
of Ramadam.
Meenakshi
Kalyanam: Madurai. Marriage of Meenakshi with Lord Shiva. Colourful temple
festival. Deities borne by colossal chariot. Ten day festival.
Fair:
Rajastahn: Urs Ajmer Sherif. Ajmer, 6 days religious, cultural and commercial
extravaganza dedicated to the Sufi.
JUNE
/ JULY
Hemis
Festival (Leh-Ladakh)
Rath Yatra:
Mainly Orissa. Greatest temple festival in honour of Lord Jagannath (Lord
of the Universe). Three colossal chariots drawn from Prui temple by thousands
of pilgrims. Similar festival, on a smaller scales, take place at Ramnagar
(near Varanasi), Serampore (near Calcutta) and Jagannathpur (near Ranchi).
JULY
/ AUGUST
Teej:
Rajasthan - Particularly Jaipur: Procession of the Goddess Parvati to welcome
monseeon; elephants, camels, dancers etc. Women wear frenn saris. Colourful.
Raksha
Bandhan:Northern and Western India. Legendary reenactment, girls tie rachis
or talisman to men's wrists. Colourful build up.
Nag Panchami:
Mainly Jodhpur, Rajasthan and Mahrashtra, dedicated to the green thousand-headed
mythical serpent called Sesha. The day is also observed in many other parts
of Western and Eastern India.
Amarnath
Yatra: Hindu: Lidder Valley, Kashmir at full moon. Pilgrims visit the place
where Lord Shiva explained the secret of salvation to his consort Parvati.
AUGUST
/ SEPTEMBER
Nehru
Trophy Boat Race (Kerala)
Independence (15th August), National : Independence Day. Prime Minister delivers
address from Delhi's Red Fort.
Janmashtmi:
National, particularly Agra, Mumbai and Mathura; Lord Krishna's birthday.
Onam:
Kerala's Harvest festival; spectacular snake boat races in many parts of Kerala.
Ganesh
Chaturthi: Mainly Pune, Orissa, Mumbai, Chennai, dedicated to elephant-headed
God Ganesh. Giant models of the deity immersed in water. Colourful and particularly
worth visiting on the day of immersion at Mumbai.
SEPTEMBER
/ OCTOBER
Dussehra:
National: 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 Kullu, the festival is also a colouful celebration. In Bengal and many
parts of Eastern India it is known as Durga Puja, and in the South as Navratri.
Fair, Himachal Pradesh: Kullu Valley to coincide with Dussehra (10 days)
Gandhi
Jayanti: National: Mahatma Gandhi's birthday. No processions.
Diwali:
National: One of the most lively and colourful 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.
NOVEMBER
/ DECEMBER
Sonepur
Mela (Sonepur-Bihar)
Hampi Festival (Hampi-Karnataka)
Muharram:
Muslim. Commemoration of Imam Hussan's Martyrdom. Tiger dancers lead processions
of colourful replicas of martyr's tomb. Colourful, particulary at Lucknow.
Bihar:
Largest cattle fair in the world; one month sonepur, Patna: on banks of the
Ganges.
Pushkar
Mela: Pushkar, near Ajmer, Rajastahn. Important and colourful. Camel and cattel
fair, attendd by Rajputs from miles around. Camel races and acrobatics etc.
Shilpgram
Crafts Mela (Udaipur-Rajasthan)
Kurukshetra
Festival (Kurukshetra, Haryana)
Konark
Dance Festival (Konark-Orissa).
Gurpurab:
Mainly in Norther India - the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, the first Guru
of the Sikhs, spiritual teacher or preceptor of Sikhism.
Chirstmas
Day: National: Most celebrated all over India.
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