Sacred Festivals

Kamakhya Temple, Nilachal Hills, Guwahati, Assam

Ambubachi Mela

Dharmaraya Swamy Temple, Pete vistar, Bengaluru, Karnataka.

Bangalore Karaga

Pan-India, with extraordinary cultural density in West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, and Punjab.

Basant Panchami

Hyderabad, Secunderabad, and surrounding districts of Telangana

Bonalu

Bodh Gaya, Sarnath, Kushinagar, Sikkim, Ladakh, and globally across Buddhist nations.

Buddha Purnima (Vesak)

Bihar, Jharkhand, Eastern Uttar Pradesh, and by migrant communities.

Chhath Puja

Devaki Krishna Temple yard, Marcel (Mashel) village, Ponda, Goa.

Chikhal Kalo

Iconic in Goa, Kerala, Northeast India, and major metropolitan cities.

Christmas

Exclusively on a grand scale in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh.

Dev Diwali, Varanasi

Nationwide across India, particularly iconic in Ayodhya, Gujarat, and Maharashtra.

Diwali (Deepavali)

The historic courtyards of the Leh Palace, Diskit Monastery in the Nubra Valley, and Likir Monastery in Ladakh.

Dosmoche

Throughout Sikkim, with core monastic prayers at Deer Park in Gangtok, Muguthang in North Sikkim, and various major monasteries.

Drupka Tseshi

Preeminent in West Bengal, Odisha, Assam, and among the Bengali diaspora.

Durga Puja

Celebrated pan-India; most famous in Mysore (Karnataka), Kullu Valley (Himachal Pradesh), Bastar (Chhattisgarh), West Bengal (as Durga Puja's end), and northern Ramlila venues.

Dussehra (Vijayadashami)

Observed by Muslim communities nationwide, with particularly historic and grand gatherings in Jammu & Kashmir, Old Delhi, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Kerala, and West Bengal.

Eid ul-Adha (Bakrid)

Celebrated by Muslims across India; major historic centers include Delhi (Jama Masjid), Hyderabad (Charminar), Lucknow, Srinagar (Hazratbal), and Mumbai (Mohammad Ali Road).

Eid ul-Fitr

Basilica of Bom Jesus, Old Goa (Velha Goa), Goa.

Feast of St. Francis Xavier

Throughout Ladakh, across all households and major Gelugpa monasteries such as Thiksey, Likir, and Spituk.

Galdan Namchot

Celebrated with unparalleled grandeur in Maharashtra (especially Mumbai and Pune), Goa, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Tamil Nadu.

Ganesh Chaturthi

Observed along the sacred banks of the Ganges, primarily in Haridwar, Rishikesh, Varanasi, Prayagraj, Garhmukteshwar, and Patna.

Ganga Dussehra

Across the state of Tripura, observed with immense religious devotion inside both rural tribal hamlets and urban administrative quarters.

Garia Puja

Celebrated with immense devotion in Punjab (especially at the Golden Temple in Amritsar), Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, and globally by the Sikh diaspora.

Guru Nanak Jayanti (Gurpurab)

Celebrated pan-India; particularly popular in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana.

Hanuman Jayanti

Celebrated at the Hemis Monastery, located 45 km southeast of Leh, Ladakh (high-altitude region in Northern India).

Hemis Festival

North India, primarily the Braj region (Mathura, Vrindavan, Barsana), Bihar, and widely across the global diaspora.

Holi

Puri, Odisha is the grand epicenter, though celebrated on smaller scales across India.

Jagannath Rath Yatra

Bihar, Jharkhand and the Purvanchal region of Uttar Pradesh.

Jitiya Vrat (Jivitputrika)

Heavily centered at the Shree Shree Govindajee Temple complex in Imphal, Manipur, as well as major local community temples across the valley.

Kang Chingba

Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, and Chhattisgarh, heavily observed by the Munda, Oraon, Santhal, and Ho tribes.

Karam Festival

Tiruvannamalai (Arunachaleswarar Temple), Tamil Nadu

Karthigai Deepam

Tripura, centered heavily inside the royal palace compound in Agartala and expanding across designated traditional tribal village blocks.

Ker Puja

The historic Chaturdasha Devata Temple at Old Agartala (Puran Agartala), Tripura.

Kharchi Puja

Sree Kottankulangara Devi Temple, Chavara, Kollam district, Kerala.

Kottankulangara Chamayavilakku

Celebrated throughout India, with its most vibrant spiritual centers in Mathura and Vrindavan (Uttar Pradesh), and energetic public displays (Dahi Handi) in Mumbai and across Maharashtra.

Krishna Janmashtami

Rotates between Prayagraj, Haridwar, Nashik, and Ujjain.

Kumbh Mela

Mithila region, Bihar state (Darbhanga, Madhubani districts).

Madhushravani

Takes place at the Triveni Sangam, the sacred confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna, and mythical Saraswati rivers in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh.

Magh Mela (Prayagraj)

Celebrated across India, with iconic events in Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh), the Isha Yoga Center (Tamil Nadu), Mahakaleshwar Temple in Ujjain (Madhya Pradesh), and Mandi (Himachal Pradesh).

Maha Shivratri

The sacred Mahamaham Tank in Kumbakonam, Thanjavur district, Tamil Nadu.

Mahamaham

Celebrated across India, with major historical celebrations in Pawapuri and Kundalpur (Bihar), the Dilwara Temples near Mount Abu (Rajasthan), and Palitana (Gujarat).

Mahavir Jayanti

Celebrated nationwide across India, with major cultural and kite-flying spectacles in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, and holy river dips in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

Makar Sankranti

Sabarimala Sree Dharma Sastha Temple, Pathanamthitta district, Kerala.

Makaravilakku

Matho Monastery, located approximately 26 km southeast of Leh, Ladakh.

Matho Nagrang

Coastal Maharashtra, the Konkan belt, Mumbai, and Goa, heavily centered in historic fishing villages (Koliwadas).

Narali Purnima

Celebrated nationwide across India, with iconic Garba and Dandiya dances in Gujarat, and massive public celebrations across Mumbai and Delhi.

Navratri

Across Sikkim, with the absolute cultural and ritual centerpiece performed at the Tsuklakhang Royal Palace Monastery courtyard in Gangtok.

Pang Lhabsol

Pan-India as Raksha Bandhan; celebrated with distinct cattle-centric and temple traditions as Gamha Purnima in Odisha.

Rakhi Purnima (Gamha Purnima)

Celebrated extensively across Northern, Western, and Central India, as well as by Hindu communities worldwide.

Raksha Bandhan

Celebrated throughout India, with deep spiritual centers in Ayodhya (Uttar Pradesh), Bhadrachalam (Telangana), and Rameswaram (Tamil Nadu).

Ram Navami

Throughout the state of Sikkim, heavily centered at the Tsuklakhang Palace Monastery and Rumtek Monastery in Gangtok, as well as Buddhist pockets in Ladakh and West Bengal.

Saga Dawa

Medaram village, situated deep inside the dense Tadvai forest zone, Mulugu district, Telangana.

Sammakka Saralamma Jatara

Kohima district and Dimapur district, prominent across ancestral Angami villages like Touphema, Khonoma, and Kisama in Nagaland.

Sekrenyi

Palani Murugan Temple, Vadapalani, and across major Murugan shrines in Tamil Nadu.

Thaipusam

Tirumala Venkateswara Temple, Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh

Tirupati Brahmotsavam

The grand stone courtyard of the historic Tawang Monastery (Gaden Namgyal Lhatse), Tawang district, Arunachal Pradesh.

Torgya Festival

Urs Ajmer Sharif

Srirangam Ranganathaswamy Temple, Tirumala Venkateswara Temple, and major Vaishnavite shrines across India.

Vaikuntha Ekadashi