When it comes to celebrating festivals, not many cities can beat Delhi. People enjoy to the maximum extent possible during these days as they get to spend quality time with their friends and family. The city is truly a conglomerate of people of different religions; hence there is some festival or the other throughout the year. Diwali, Eid, Christmas, Guru Nanak Jayanti and many other major festivals are celebrated with an open mind and with the sole objective of sharing positive energy with others, irrespective of their religions. It would not be an exaggeration to state that, when celebrated in Delhi, the festivals get a completely different colour and entertainment. Such is the positive ambience of the place.

Month Wise Festivals in Delhi

January

The New Year starts off with Vasant Panchami, the festival dedicated to Lord Shiva. This spring festival is then followed by Republic Day (26th January), which is celebrated with a great deal of patriotism and bravery. On the 30th January, Martyr’s Day is observed.

February To March

There are two important festivals that are celebrated during this time. One is the Maha Shivaratri – dedicated to Lord Shiva and the other is the festival of colours – Holi. In the former, people observe full day fast and in the latter, people play with each other spraying colour powder and water. Earlier people also used scented water and powder made from petals to play Holi.

March To April

Hindus celebrate Sri Ramnavami during this period – the day when Lord Ram was born. Also the sacred harvest festival of Baisakhi is celebrated on 13th April. Mahavir Jayanti – a festival for the Jains is celebrated during this period.

May

Buddha Purnima – a festival honouring the birth of Lord Buddha, falls during this month

July To August

Among the festivals celebrated during this period, the most significant ones are  Independence Day (15th August), Naag Panchami (honouring the serpent God, Nag Devta) and Raksha Bandhan –a festival that honours the bond between a sister and brother, where sisters tie a sacred thread around the wrists of their brothers and pray to the Almighty for their siblings’ prosperity.

August To September

Ganesh Chaturthi, dedicated to Lord Ganesh is the most important festival celebrated during this period. Lord Krishna’s birth is celebrated as Janmashtami during this time. Also Parsis celebrate their New Year, Pateli during August.

September To October

The most important festivals during this period are the Ram Lila and Durga Puja (also known as Dussehra). Gandhi Jayanti, birthday of the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi, is celebrated on 2nd October.

October To November

The festival of lights, Diwali, the biggest festival of Hindus, is celebrated during this period. People burst crackers, decorate their house with lights and distribute sweets and gifts to friends and family members. Five days after this festival, sisters put a Tilak on the forehead of their brothers. Govardhan, a festival for the cows and Guru Nanak Jayanti (birthday of Sikh religion’s founder, Guru Nanak) are also celebrated during this time.

December

Christmas is the biggest festival of December in Delhi.

Muslim festivals are not covered here, because they follow a separate lunar calendar and dates change accordingly every year. The most important festivals that Muslims celebrate are Ramadan, Bakrid, Muharram, Milad-Un-Nabi etc.