Festivals and entertainment Delhi

Diwali

This is also called as the ‘festival of lights’ and is celebrated either in the month of October or November. It is celebrated on the occasion of home-coming of Lord Rama after fourteen years of exile. Being considered as the principal Hindu festival, people decorate their homes with lights and flowers; they make up rangolis and light up fire crackers, diyas (earthen lamps) and candles. Exchanging gifts and worshipping Goddess Lakshmi and Lord Ganesha are a part of traditional festivities on Diwali. During this time the whole decorated with lights. Delhi has lot of Diwali mela’s that you can attend to do shopping and get into feel of festivity. The most famous are Sunder Nagar mela and Blind School mela.

Eid

Eid is the major festival of Muslims and is celebrated two times a year, known by the names of Eid-Ul-Fitr and Eid-Ul-Zuha. Eid-Ul-Zuha also known as Bakarid has great religious importance for Muslims. On this festival goats are sacrificed and the meat is distributed to all. The underlying idea behind doing this is the sacrifice of all evil lying within. On the other hand, Eid-Ul-Fitr is celebrated in the month of Ramzan, the holy month for Muslims. During this time they observe strict fasts daily and conclude on the day of Eid, they celebrate by offering special prayers, exchange gifts and make a special dessert called ‘Sewaiyan’. To experience the festivity you should must visit Jama Masjid

Holi

This is the festival of colours and people are seen soaked in powder and liquid colours from head to toe. There are various legends associated with it but the principal legend says that Holi is celebrated to commemorate the victory of good over evil as on this day when Holika attempted to burn baby Prahlad, she herself got burnt. On the eve of Holi, fire is worshipped. Children enjoy this festival greatly as they play with pichkaris (water guns) and water balloons. Delhi host a lot of Holi parties with lots of colours, water, music and food. It is one of the most energetic festival in India.

Navratri and Dussehra

This is the festival that continues to be celebrated for nine days. On each day a different form of Goddess Durga is worshipped, plus a stage is drama takes place for 10 days known as Ramleela. There are lot of things that take place during this time, Gujarati people also host a community dance programs where people come dressed up in ghagra-choli and dance in pairs brimming with energy and excitement using decorated wooden sticks (called as dandiya). Tenth day after the conclusion of Navratri is Dussehra when the effigies of demons ‘Ravana’, ‘Kumbhakarana’ and ‘Meghnatha’ are burnt to symbolise victory of good over evil. The biggest Ramleela that takes place in Delhi is in Chandni Chowk.

Durga Puja

Over the whole of Delhi, Durga Puja is celebrated by Bengalis with exuberance. It commences from sixth day of Navratri. On every day, Ma Durga is worshipped with great veneration and cultural programs are conducted besides the Puja Pandal. You can roam around and find beautifully decorated Durga idols in different pandals across the CR Park area (also called Mini Bengal). People enjoy food and festivities all through these four days and on the last day i.e. Vijay Dashami, Durga Ma’s idol is immersed in a holy river. She is bid a hearty farewell to be welcomed next year again.