Festivals in India
India is a land of festivals. Celebrations are a part of each month of the calendar in this country. There are different reasons behind these celebrations and occasions. The uniqueness about each is that they are celebrated in different parts of the country under different names.
Festivals in January
There are several festivals that are celebrated in the month of January.
- Maker Sankranti - This is the celebration of the onset of the harvest season in India. This festival is celebrated all over India and is known by different names. It is celebrated with sweet preparations and new clothes.
- Lohri - This is the name by which Makar Sankranti goes by in North India. it signifies a celebration of a season that marks the end of the cold winter and arrival of warmer days. Bonfires are lit around which people celebrate with music and food.
- Pongal - This is the name of the harvest festival in South India. it is celebrated for three days during which the newly reaped Pongal or "Rice" is offered to the Sun god.
- Float Festival - This beautiful festival is celebrated at Madurai during night time on a full moon. The bejeweled deities of Meenakshi temple are taken on a procession. Afterwards they are floated on a decorated and lamp lit raft in a tank.
- National Kite Festival - The beginning of the harvest season is marked the national kite festival in Gujarat. Thousands of colourful kites fill the horizons of the sky. There are competitions too that are held for flying kites.
- Kerala Village Fair - in the month of January there are cultural festivals that are held in the villages of Kerala. The ten day festival is marked by folk dance and music.
- Bikaner Festival - A chief attraction of this festival in January is a procession of richly decorated camels. Apart from several competitions that are held during the day music and festivities also mark this day.
- Pattadakal Dance Festival - This is a dance festival that is held in January in the state of Karnataka. The name comes from Pattadakal which was the capital of the Chalukyan kings.
- Id-ul-Fitr - The month of January marks the end of the Ramzan season of fasting among Muslims. Id-ul-fitr is celebrated with feasts and gaiety.
- Vasant Panchami - This is another occasion to welcome spring season in India. On this day the Goddess of learning, "Saraswati" is worshipped. Colourful clothes especially a shade of bright yellow are the main attraction of the day.
- New Year- The New Year is among the most popular festival celebrated all across the globe. The origin of the New Year can be traced back to the reign of the emperors. It was the emperors who though of celebrating a particular day in a year that would commemorate the beginning of a brand new year and the end of the current year. The first celebrations of the New Year were found in about 2000 years in Mesopotamia. While the Persians, Phoenicians and the Egyptians celebrated the New Year in the middle of March that is during the time of Equinox, the Greeks celebrated it in the winter. According to the ancient Roman calendar, the New Year was celebrated on 1st of March. In 46 B.C. Julius Caesar, the Roman Emperor officially declared 1st of January as the New Year. During the medieval period, 25th March was declared as the New Year. In later times, the King of England announced 25th December that is Jesus' birth as the New Year. Almost after 500 years, the Gregorian calendar came up whereby the ancient Julian calendar was abolished by Pope Gregory XIII and the Gregorian calendar was introduced. In the year 1582, New Year was started celebrating on the first of January every month, following the Gregorian.
- Republic Day- Republic Day is among the 3 national holidays celebrated in India. Republic Day in India is celebrated on 26th of January every year. The day is celebrated with great pomp and enthusiasm, especially in the capital city of New Delhi. Spectacular of all the celebrations is the Republic Day Parade that is held in New Delhi near Rajpath. It comprises March past by 3 armed forces, folk dances from different states in India, massive parades. The cultural unity of India is beautifully reflected in the republic day celebrations. It was on 26th January, 1950 that India's constitution came up and India thus became a Sovereign, Democratic and Republic state. The patriotic passion of the people in India on the Republic Day gathers the entire nation together even with the embedded diversity.
