Important Festivals in India
Jan-14 | Pongal
Pongal is a four-day-long harvest festival celebrated in Tamil Nadu, which falls in the month of Thai (that is, the January-February season) when crops like rice, sugarcane, turmeric etc. are harvested.
The term 'pongal' in Tamil means ""to boil"", and this festival is celebrated as a thanksgiving ceremony for the year's harvest. Pongal, one of the important Hindu festivals, falls around the same time as Lohri every year, which is around mid-January.
Pongal also happens to be the name of a dish consumed during this festive time, which is sweetened rice boiled with lentils."
Jan-26 | Republic Day
Republic Day is a national holiday in India. It honors the date on which the Constitution of India came into effect on 26 January 1950 replacing the Government of India Act (1935) as the governing document of India and thus, turning the nation into a newly formed republic.
The Constitution was adopted by the Indian Constituent Assembly on 26 November 1949 and came into effect on 26 January 1950 with a democratic government system, completing the country's transition towards becoming an independent republic. 26 January was chosen as the date for Republic day because it was on this day in 1929 when the Declaration of Indian Independence (Purna Swaraj) was proclaimed by the Indian National Congress in lieu of the Realm status as a Dominion later instated by the British Regime."
Mar-11 |Shivaratri
The festival celebrates the grand marriage of the lord of destruction, Shiva -- with the goddess of fertility, love, and beauty -- Parvati, who is also known as Shakti (power). According to Hindu mythology, on the night of the marriage, Lord Shiva had a very diverse group of acquaintances including Hindu gods, goddesses, animals, and demons escorting him to the house of the goddess.
Mar-29 | Holi
Holi is a popular ancient Hindu festival, also known as the "festival of spring", "the "festival of colors", and the "festival of love". The festival signifies the triumph of good over evil. It originated and is predominantly celebrated in India, but has also spread to other regions of Asia and parts of the Western world through the diaspora from the Indian subcontinent.
Holi celebrates the arrival of spring, the end of winter, the blossoming of love, and for many it's a festive day to meet others, play and laugh, forget and forgive, and repair broken relationships. The festival also celebrates the beginning of a good spring harvest season. It lasts for a night and a day, starting on the evening of the Purnima (Full Moon day) falling in the Hindu calendar month of Phalguna, which falls around middle of March in the Gregorian calendar. The first evening is known as Holika Dahan (burning of demon holika) or Chhoti Holi and the following day as Holi, Rangwali Holi, Dhuleti, Dhulandi, or Phagwah."
Mid-May | Eid
Eid al-Fitr means "festival of breaking the fast" and marks the end of Ramadan.
Traditionally, Eid is celebrated for three days in all Muslim-majority countries.
Muslims across the world begin Eid celebrations by partaking in communal post-dawn prayers, followed by a short sermon.The prayers take place in mosques or large halls but in many countries, it is also held in the open to accommodate the large numbers.
It is common for Muslim-majority nations to decorate their streets with festive lights and hold carnivals to commemorate the end of the holy month.
Aug-15 | Independence Day
Independence Day is celebrated annually on 15 August as a national holiday in India commemorating the nation's independence from the United Kingdom on 15 August 1947, the day when the provisions of the 1947 Indian Independence Act, which transferred legislative sovereignty to the Indian Constituent Assembly, came into effect.
Aug-22 | Rakshabandhan
This is a special Hindu festival which is celebrated in India and countries like Nepal to symbolize the love between a brother and a sister. The occasion of Raksha Bandhan is celebrated on the full moon day of the Hindu luni-solar calendar in the month of Shravana which typically falls in the August month of Gregorian calendar."
Oct-17 | Navaratri
Navaratri is a nine-night festival that honors the Mother Goddess Durga, in all her manifestations. Durga is the warrior form of Goddess Parvati, the wife of Lord Shiva (the powerful destroyer/transformer of the universe). Hindu mythology says she took on the form of Durga to destroy demon Mahishasura, and is thus considered to be the protective mother who battles evil forces. The festival culminates with Dussehra, a celebration of victory of good over evil, on the tenth day.
There are actually four different Navaratri festivals throughout the year in India. However, Sharad Navaratri is the most popular one. This festival takes place in late September, or early October, each year. The dates of the festival are determined according to the Hindu lunar calendar."
11-4 | Diwali
Diwali, also spelled Divali, one of the major religious festivals in Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism, lasting for five days from the 13th day of the dark half of the lunar month Ashvina to the second day of the light half of the lunar month Karttika. (The corresponding dates in the Gregorian calendar usually fall in late October and November.) The name is derived from the Sanskrit term dipavali, meaning "row of lights." The festival generally symbolizes the victory of light over darkness.