India is a vibrant and culturally rich country, where hundreds of festivals are celebrated throughout the year. Indian festivals are grand celebrations that act as an opportunity to bring together family members living far away, as well as keep a society whole. Celebrated with zeal, enthusiasm and fervor, festivals of India are bound in ritual as well as fun activities. And no matter which religion dictates the rules, the one thing all the festivals have in common is the gathering of throngs of people.
Here Is A Complete List Of Indian Festivals 2022
For a country that celebrates so many festivals, it might be hard to keep up. Here we have come up with few popular upcoming Indian festivals list that will help you mark your favorite one.
January 13 (Thursday) – Lohri
Almost every culture has festivals related to the harvest, where people pray to give thanks for their bounty. In India, the onset of the harvest season is celebrated with Lohri, celebrated mostly in western India. The festival is known for its lavish spreads of delicious food, gathering of families, and large community bonfires. People sing and dance around the bonfire to Lohri songs.
January 14 (Friday) – Makar Sankranti
Widely celebrated across the country, this festival marks the end of winter and the start of longer days. As it is a celebration of the sun, it is observed according to the solar cycle. This is unlike most Indian festivals which are set by the lunar cycle. The festivities include kite flying, bonfires, dancing, and eating delicious sweets.
January 14 (Friday) – Pongal
Pongal is a festival corresponding with Makar Sankranti, and celebrated in parts of south India, particularly Tamil Nadu. Like Makara Sankranti, it is a popular harvest festivals dedicated to the sun. Celebrations are spread across four days that includes dances, bonfires, and cattle races. All houses are decorated with rangolis (designs made with coloured rice powder). Attukal Pongala has the largest gathering of women in the world (around 2.5 million women) and is recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records.
February 5 (Saturday) – Basant Panchami
Basant Panchami is dedicated to the goddess Saraswati. It also marks the start of preparations for Holi, and the transition from winter to spring. In fact, the festival is supposed to take place exactly forty days before the start of spring. It is especially vibrant in Punjab, where people dress in yellow, like the flowering mustard fields, and take part in kite flying games.
March 1 (Tuesday) – Mahashivratri
This festival is celebrated annually in honor of the deity Shiva. While there is a Shivaratri in every month of the Hindu calendar, this festival is a much grander affair. It occurs in late winter, before the arrival of summer, on what is said to be the night when Shiva and his consort Parvati were married. This is meant to symbolize the “overcoming of darkness and ignorance”. It is usually a solemn affair involving chanting of prayers and fasting.
March 18 (Friday) – Holi
Also known as “the festival of colours,” Holi is one of the most popular Indian festivals and celebrated across India and even the world. It is meant to mark the arrival of spring (and the spring harvest season), and the end of winter. Holi also marks the triumph of ‘good’ over ‘evil’ with the defeat of the demoness Holika. Religious rituals are performed in front of a bonfire, with the hope that ‘evil’ will be destroyed in the fire as Holika was. People also celebrate by throwing and splashing water and colored powder on each other.
Also Read: Delicious Traditional Holi Dishes
April 14 (Thursday) – Baisakhi
The Baisakhi festival is celebrated by Hindus and Sikhs alike. It welcomes the spring harvest season and the traditional solar New Year. For Sikhs, it also marks the day when their tenth guru laid out the foundation of the Khalsa in 1699 and is thus also the first day of the Sikh New Year.
May 2 (Monday) – Eid-ul-Fitr
Eid-ul-Fitr is a major festival for Muslims. It occurs after the sighting of the new moon that marks the end of the month of Ramadan. While Ramadan is spent in penance and fasting (broken after sunset with an iftar), Eid-ul-Fitr is celebrated with prayers, colorful feasts, bazaars, and other festivities.
July 1 (Friday) – Jagannatha Rathyatra
Also known as the Chariot Festival, Jagannatha Rathyatra is celebrated every year at Puri, the temple town in Odisha, on the east coast of India. This unique Hindu festival takes the idols of three Hindu gods Jagannath, his older brother Balabhadra, and sister Subhadra out of their temples in a colourful procession to meet their devotees. The procession in Puri is known to be the biggest and the oldest Ratha Yatra in the world. The procession is huge, with colorfully decorated chariots, drawn by hundreds and thousands of devotees. After a stay for seven days, the idols return to their abode in Sri Mandira.
July 9 (Saturday) – Eid-ul-Adha or Bakr-Id
Eid-ul-Adha is a major Muslim festival that celebrates the devotion of Ibrahim (or Abraham) and his willingness to sacrifice his son to God. It is often associated with the sacrifice of a goat, as before Ibrahim could sacrifice his son, God provided a lamb instead. This is why the festival is also popularly known as Bakr-Id. It’s known to be the second most revered Eid after Eid al-Fitr, and marks the end of the annual Hajj to Mecca.
August 11 (Thursday) – Raksha Bandhan
This popular Hindu festival is meant to celebrate the sibling bond between brothers and sisters. On this day, sisters of all ages tie string charms, amulets or talismans, called a rakhi, around the wrists of their brothers. This is meant to be a symbol of protection that the brother promises the sister, while also gifting their sisters something precious to seal the deal. This beloved Indian festival is also celebrated by different religions, and is known for its mouth-watering sweets.
August 19 (Friday) – Sri Krishna Janmashtami
This annual Hindu festival celebrates the birth of Krishna, an avatar of the deity Vishnu. A fast is observed through the day, along with the chanting of prayers and singing of devotional songs.
Celebrated largely in north India, special vibrant festivities take place in regions such as Mathura in Uttar Pradesh (allegedly the birthplace of Krishna), and in Vrindavan, where he is said to have grown up.
August 31 (Wednesday) – Ganesh Chathurthi
Vinayak Chaturthi or Ganesh Chaturthi is one of the most popular Indian festivals celebrated by Hindus. It is celebrated across most of the country, in the month of Bhadra (according to the Hindu calendar). This colorful festival marks the birth of the elephant-headed God, Ganesh. Ganesh Chathurthi is amongst the Indian festivals that are celebrated with the greatest pomp and show. Celebrations include sounds of beating dhols and chants of ‘Ganpati Bappa Morya’. On the tenth day, the idol is immersed in a water body.
September 8 (Thursday) Onam
Celebrated annually with its origin in Kerala, Onam is one of the largest cultural festivals of the state. It is a traditional 10-day harvest festival to mark the homecoming of the mythical King Mahabali. It’s celebrated as the monsoon bids adieu leaving the sky blue, fields green, and filling the hearts of people with happiness and a sense of bonhomie. During this grand celebration, the land of God’s Own Country turns into a riot of colors and shows off Kerala’s distinct medley of traditions and food.
September 26 (Monday) – Navratri
Spanning nine nights (and 10 days), Navaratri is a festival celebrated throughout India. One of the most popular north Indian festivals, Navratri is associated with the victory of good over evil, and is a celebration of the goddess Devi. In northern, central and western India, it celebrates the battle between the God Rama over the demon king Ravana. It is synonymous with the festival of Dussehra that follows it. The main highlights are the Garba dances performed during the nine nights of Navaratri.
October 1 (Saturday) – Durga Puja
This is one of the most popular celebrations in the eastern states of India, and usually coincides with Vijayadashami or Dussehra celebrated elsewhere in the northern and western parts of the country. This Indian festival takes place over 10 days, with highly decorated idols, dancing, singing, food, and prayers. On the tenth day of Vijayadashami, the idols are carried to a body of water and immersed, accompanied by a procession with drum beats and chants.
October 5 (Wednesday) – Dussehra
Also known as Vijayadashami, the festival of Dussehra is celebrated at the end of Navaratri every year. While in the eastern and north-eastern states this day marks the end of Durga Puja. In other places in north India, effigies of Ravana (along with his son Meghanatha and brother Kumbhkarana), symbolising ‘evil’, are burnt with fireworks marking the victory of ‘good’.
October 24 (Monday) Diwali
Our list of Indian festivals will not be complete without the festival of lights, Diwali. Celebrated across India, it is also known as Deepavali in the south. The five-day festival usually takes place a month after Dussehra. It is meant to symbolise the spiritual victory of light over darkness, and good over evil. It is also said to be when the god Rama and his wife Sita returned to their capital Ayodhya (after the defeat of demon Ravana on Dussehra). Homes, shops and temples are all brightly lit, and people exchange delicious sweets.
Also Read: The Lasting Environmental Degradation During Diwali And How We Can Stop It
November 8 (Tuesday) – Guru Nanak Jayanti
This festival celebrates the birth of the first Sikh guru, Guru Nanak, and is one of the most important events for the Sikh community. Celebrations last three days and Gurdwaras are lit up during this time. Special langars (community meals) are also organized, and people celebrate with processions, a display of martial arts, and singing hymns.
December 25 (Sunday) – Christmas
One of the most popular festivals all over the world, this month is usually dominated with gifts and Christian holidays. Christmas is a special time as it celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. Churches and cities are lit up and decorated, with beautifully decorated Christmas trees in both homes and public spaces.
Also Read: Jaipur Literature Festival
So, which of these Indian festivals are you waiting for from the festival list 2022? Do let us know in the comment box below.
