Famous 5 Most Celebrated Festivals in India, The rich, diverse and cultural soil of India blossoms unique festivals through the year. These festivals are of huge cultural and holy significance where you can observe locals brimming with joy from the start till end.
If you want to discover the true essence of India’s diverse culture, traditions and heritage, the year-round festivals celebrate here reflect the same in purest form. The celebrations around these festivals are pleasing to the eyes wherein every local or tourist is fascinated by its blissful aura. It’s all about merrymaking through mass gatherings, exchange of gifts, dance and music performances, holy rituals and simply enjoying every moment.
Every festival of India is a highly-anticipated one by the locals as they look for reasons to celebrate, enjoy and spread cheer. So when you visit India, you should make sure that you book your trip around a festival that would be celebrated at the destination you wish to explore.
famous 5 most celebrated festivals in india
To spice it up further, we have listed below a few festivals that flaunt a signature style of its own ad are largely celebrated with huge pomp and grandeur in some of the major cities of India. Each of these festivals is symbolic of legendary tales to keep you engaged through this post.
These festivals are in the line for your before 2019 comes to an end. We highly recommend you to book your trip in advance with us for a comfortable and hassle-free journey.
First up is…
HEMIS FESTIVAL
Date: 11th-12th July 2019
Destination: Hemis Monastery, Ladakh
Highlights:
- The traditional ‘Cham’ Dance where Buddhist Lhamas wear traditional dresses and bright, colourful masks.
- Tap your feet to the rhythm of drumbeats, cymbals and long horns.
- A local liquor ‘Chang’ is served that adds more charm to this gala.
- The thangka displayed in every 12 years is adorned with beautiful gems, stones and pearls.
- Explore the fine handicrafts and lip-smacking delicacies in and outside the monastery.
Description:
Hemis Festival is a two-day cultural extravaganza that showcases the theme of victory of good over evil. It is all celebrated to mark the birth anniversary of Guru Padmadsambhava or Gin Rinpoche,
who is believed to be the founder of Tibetan Buddhism. This festival is hosted at the Hemis Festival, the biggest monastery in Ladakh. All the locals and several Buddhist monks, folk artists, dancers and tourists gather in unison to celebrate it.
This carnival’s preparations are supervised by the head priest of the monastery. The highlight of this fiesta is the gigantic ‘Thangka’ showcasing Guru Padmasambhava is exhibited once in every 12 years. There are various attractions of this festival that flaunt the rich culture and traditions of Buddhism and its locals at the very best.
It is believed to be an 8th century old festival and is one of the highly-anticipated festivals of Ladakh.
GANESH CHATURTHI
Date: 2nd September 2019
Destination: Maharashtra
Highlights:
- Witness the enthusiasm of the locals and their devotion for Lord Ganesha.
- Walk through the streets of the city to view the decorations on board.
- Join the daily celebrations in the form of dance, music and holy aarti.
- Savour the irresistible modaks, sweet dumplings offered to Lord Ganesha as Prasad or bhog (divine offering).
- Watch out for the high-spirited, vibrant street procession of Ganesha’s idols on the last day of this festival.
Description:
Ganesh Chaturthi is cheerfully celebrated for a period of eleven days. It marks the birthday of Lord Ganesha or Lord Vinayak believed to be symbolic of wealth, wisdom and fortune. He is thus worshipped daily to seek blessings and remove unwanted obstacles. The local homes and streets of Maharashtra are decorated with breathtaking Ganesha’s idol statues.
These statues are worshipped by thousands daily with greater devotion during this festival. The streets of Maharashtra are immensely populated with locals, dancers, music artists, tourists and devotees for sure.
On the last day, all the idols of Lord Ganesha are immersed into the water body as a ritual that symbolizes Lord Ganesha’s homeward journey to Mount Kailash which is home to his parents Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati.
DURGA PUJA
Date: 4th-8th October 2019
Destination: Kolkata
Highlights:
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- Visit Kumartuli where you can spot artisans engaged in creating Goddess Durga statues for this festival.
- The street procession of Goddess Durga’s idols that are comfortable settled on a raised pandal.
- The last day of the festival observes immersion of Goddess Durga.
- Check out the various pandals organized by the Government of India.
- Check out the pandals in every corner of the city for the hand-sculpted Goddess Durga’s statues.
Description:
This pulsating fiesta is all about saluting the feminine energy in the form of Goddess Durga. This festival is celebrated with huge pomp and grandeur in Kolkata. This is the reason why, every women is most respected and supports gender equality in every sphere. If you are visiting Kolkata, plan you trip around the Durga Puja to capture this city in a festive mood.
The Durga Puja festival runs for ten days wherein each day observes the worshipping of nine forms of Goddess Durga. It is recommended you stay in Kolkata for at least a week to view its spectacular ambience including the amazing idols of Goddess Durga.
DUSSEHRA
Date: 8th October 2019
Destination: Delhi/Mysore
Highlights:
- Entertain yourself with a special program ‘Ramlila’ inspired by the Indian epic ‘Ramayana’.
- Soothe your eyes with the illuminated Mysore Palace through the night.
- Join the masses to sight the burning of effigies of Ravana in different corners of Delhi.
Description:
This one-day festival is widely celebrated in the country and symbolizes the victory of good over evil. It is also a mark of an unforgettable event of the Hindu epic Ramayana wherein Lord Rama defeated the demon Ravana. This festival got its name from Ravana who was a ten-headed demon and his annihilation led to the name ‘Dussehra’.
The highlight of this festival is the burning of three effigies that are believed to be the brothers of Lord Ravana, the demon king of Sri Lanka. This tradition is said to be 6th century old and is followed with greater enthusiasm till now.
This festival is also known as ‘Vijyadashmi’ inspired by a historical event where Goddess Durga killed the demon Mahishasur and it is thus symbolic of its theme- victory of good over evil.
DIWALI
Date: 27th October 2019
Destination: New Delhi
Highlights:
- Local houses illuminated with Diyas, candles and lights
- Holy prayers to seek blessings of Goddess Lakshmi
- Savor finger-licking delicacies including sweets
- Diwali melas to shop earthen Diyas and various handcrafted decorative items
Description:
Diwali is the biggest religious festival of India that is celebrated for a period of two days. This event holds an interesting tale linked to its origin. The great India epic ‘Ramayana’ mentioned about Lord Rama’s return to home in Ayodhya after 14 years of exile.
During this festival, almost every street is lit with bright lights, earthen Diyas, colourful candles and other decoration items. People from all walks of life celebrate this festival in unison and exchange gifts and sweets. The sky is filled with captivating fireworks’ display till late hours. This festival is simply about happiness, positivity and illuminating each others’ life.
Every festival of India signifies a positive meaning or a deep-rooted cultural significance. These festivals running through the year contribute in the tourism industry in a big way. We suggest you mark these festival dates in your personal calendar plan your India trip around your favourite festival better.
