India is a country with vast territory, and that is made up of diverse religions and cultures. It creates a diverse local and national level festival culture. A saying goes that there are thousands of festivals in India, and all of them are welcomed with a huge celebration. We can summarize the festivals into five categories in general. They are:
- Seasonal Festivals: It remarks on the new beginning and the harvest season. It is widely celebrated in Makar Sankranti in the north, Pongal in the south and Onam in Kerala.
- Birthdays: Birthdays and anniversaries of great people and gods including the Mahashivratri, Ganesh Chaturthi and Krishna Janmashtami.
- Relationships: Celebrating the relationship between brother and sister or couples. It is widely celebrated like the Raksha Bandhan and Karwa Chauth.
- Patriotic: National days are also celebrated with great passion over the whole country such as Republic Day on January 26 and Independence Day on August 15 every year.
- Triumph over evil: Festivals like Diwali and Holi are celebrated as the triumph of god over the evil.
Here we mention festivals that are widely celebrated in India. We also mention the time of these festivals according to 2022 calendar.
Bikaner Camel Festival: Dedicated to Camels and Rajasthan culture. January 12th –13th, 2022
Lohri: Winter harvest festival. January 13, 2022.
Makar Sankranti: Harvest festival in north India. January 14, 2022.
Pongal: Harvest festival in south India. January 14, 2022.
Republic Day: Anniversary of the Constitution of India. January 26, 2022.
Basant_Panchami: Festival for Goddess Saraswati (goddess of knowledge, music, learning, and arts). February 5, 2022.
Mahashivratri: Worship of Lord Shiva. March 1, 2022.
Losar: Tibetan New Year. March 3, 2022.
Holi: Festival of Colors. March 18 2022.
Ugadi: Hindu New Year. April 2, 2022.
Bihu: Assamese New Year. April 2, 2022.
Mewar Festival: Spring’s arrival. April 4, 2022.
Baisakhi: Spring harvest festival in Punjab. April 14, 2022.
Mahavir Jayanti: Birth Of Lord Mahavir (founder of Jainism). April 14, 2022.
Good Friday: The atoning death of Jesus Christ. April 15, 2022.
Hanuman Jayanti: Birth of Hanuman (the monkey god). April 16, 2022.
Eid Ul-Fitr: Festival of Breaking of the Fast. May 3, 2022.
Buddha Jayanti: Gautama Buddha’s birthday. May 16, 2022.
Ratha Yatra: Lord Jagannath (avatar of Lord Vishnu). July 1, 2022.
Eid Ul-Adha: Feast of Sacrifice. July 10, 2022.
Hemis: Birth of Lord Padmasambhava, founder of Tibetan Tantric Buddhism. 8th–9th July 2022.
Raksha Bandhan: The bond between siblings. August 1, 2022.
Independence Day: Freedom from British rule. August 15, 2022.
Janmashtami: Birth of Krishna (8th avatar of God Vishnu). August 18, 2022.
Ganesh Chaturthi: Birthday of Ganesha (the elephant-headed God). August 31, 2022.
Onam: New Year for the Malayali People in Kerala. September 8, 2022.
Navaratri: 9-nights worshipping three goddesses. September 26 to October 4, 2022.
Durga Puja: Victory of the goddess Durga over a demon. September 26 to October 5, 2022.
Gandhi Jayanti: The birthday of Mahatma Gandhi (Father of The Nation) October 2, 2022.
Dussehra: Victory of Rama on the tenth day. October 5, 2022.
Eid Milad Un Nabi: Birthday of Muhammad (founder of Islam). October 9, 2022.
Karwa Chauth: Hindu Women’s Festival. October 13, 2022.
Diwali: Festival of Lights. October 24, 2022.
Chhath Puja: Thanking the sun god Surya. October 30, 2022.
Guru Nanak Jayanti: Birth of Guru Nanak (founder of Sikhism). November 8th, 2022.
Pushkar Camel Fair: A decorated camel carnival, plus Rajasthan culture activities November 1st–9th, 2022.
Among all these festivals the Diwali is the most important festival. It is a national festival which is celebrated over 5 days. It is celebrated all over the country and many non-Hindus also celebrate this occasion. It is the celebration of god’s triumph over the evil. There are other big festivals in India also that are celebrated with huge arrangements. We bring here the top 5 Indian festivals that are widely celebrated in India.
Diwali- The Festival of Lights
Activities: Lighting the diyas with little oil lamps is the most activity on Diwali. People worship the Lakshmi known as the goddess of wealth. It is widely known as the festival of light.
Date: October 24, 2022 (Monday). The main celebration lasts for 5 days that means it will be 22-26 October 2022.
Observed by: Hindus, Jains, Sikhs, and Buddhists.
Best locations: Celebrated all over India, the best cities to experience Diwali includes Delhi, Jaipur, and Kolkata.
Holi- Festivals of Colors
Activities: Colored-powder fights and Holika bonfires.
Date: March 18, 2022 (Friday).
Observed by Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists.
Best locations: All over India including the top places Udaipur, Pushkar, Hampi, Jaipur, and Goa.
Navaratri — Dedicated to The Divine Feminine Principle in Nine Nights
Activities: 9 days of fasting, meditation, prayers, dandiya dance and visiting temples. People dre
- First day — yellow
- Second day — green
- Third day — grey
- Fourth day — orange
- Fifth day — white
- Sixth day — red
- Seventh day — royal blue
- Eighth day — pink
- Ninth day — purple
Date: September 26 to October 4, 2022.
Observed by Hindus.
Best locations: All states in India.
Durga Puja — Victory of Durga Over the Demon Mahishasura
Activities: Visiting Durga Puja pandals. These are the temporary shrines for worshiping Goddess Durga. Durga Puja is the largest festival in the West Bengal area especially in Kolkata. This festival is the commemoration of the goddess Durga over the Mahisura who is the buffalo demon. It is a ten day event containing many rituals and religious practices. Large size statues of Durga with her ten arms are created to place on the temples.
Date: September 26 to October 5, 2022.
Observed by Hindus.
Best locations: In Kolkata and West Bengal.
Onam — New Year for Malayali People in Kerala
Activities: Sports competitions, Traditional dances, Kathakali performances (a form of dance-drama of South India using), boat races and feast. It is the mostly celebrated festival in Kerala. It is a 10 day harvest festival and it is marked the beginning of harvesting season and also commemorates the return of the mythical king Mahabali.
Date: September 8, 2022 (Thursday). The whole event will be within August 30 to September 9 in 2022.
Observed by Hindus.
Best locations: Kerala.