India is truly a spiritual country. With this in mind, it is obvious that there are many festivals that are held in the country. You can see varied and numerous festivals all throughout the year, all allowing you to see Indian culture as it truly is. Those that are mentioned below are really popular and thousands of tourists from all around the world visit every single year.
Diwali
This is a 5 day festival that highlights Hindu New Year. You will hear it mentioned as Festival Of Lights because of the small clay lamps, fireworks and candles that will be lit when celebrations start. Lights represent evil being destroyed by good and darkness being destroyed by brightness. The experience is definitely memorable and if you just want to visit one Indian festival, this is the one to consider.
Ganesh Chaturthi
Ganesh Chaturthi is an 11 days festival that is basically a celebration of Lord Ganesha’s birth. Lord Ganesha is a really important elephant head god found in Hindu culture. You will want to see the start of this festival since this is where huge Ganesha statues will be installed in podiums and homes. When the festival is over, statues will be paraded on streets, all accompanies by dancing and singing. The last stage is submerging statues in the ocean.
Holi Festival
This is, most likely, the most well-known Indian festival in other countries but it is also really popular in India. The festival only lasts 2 days. It is another Indian festival that celebrates the triumph of good over evil, together with spring harvest. You will see the festival regularly mentioned as The Festival Of Colors. That is because people will throw water and powder that are colored all over them and others. Parties are held and dancing under sprinklers is quite common. During the celebrations you will also see a cannabis plants pasta being made and eating. It is known as Bhang. This is a really carefree festival that you will love if you do not mind getting dirty and wet.
Onam
This is a 10 days traditional Indian harvest festival, marking King Mahabali homecoming. When referring to heritage and culture, this is a truly rich festival. Indians will decorate the houses and the grounds in front of them with various flowers that will be arranged in patterns. At the same time, festival locations will celebrate through feasts, new clothes, games, sports and even snake boat races.
