Festivals and Fairs of India

Fair Location Story/Reference

● The Hornbill Festival is organized to encourage
inter-tribal interaction and promote the cultural
Hornbill heritage of Nagaland.

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Nagaland
Festival ● It is named after the Indian Hornbill, a large and
colorful forest bird, which is displayed in the folklore

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of most of the state's tribes.

● Kumbh Mela, one of the largest religious gatherings in

the world.
● Maha Kumbh Mela- It comes once in every 144 years
after 12 Purna Kumbh Melas.
● Purna Kumbh Mela: It is held every 12 years in
an
Prayagraj.
Haridwar,
● Ardh Kumbh Mela: The Ardh Kumbh Mela is held every
Kumbh Prayag,
6 years, also in Prayagraj.
Mela Ujjain,
● Kumbh Mela: The Kumbh Mela, often referred to as
and Nasik
the "normal" or "regular" Kumbh Mela, is held every 3
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years. It alternates between four locations: Haridwar,

Prayagraj, Nashik, and Ujjain.
● The event is based on Hindu astrology and it
celebrates the victory of gods over demons in a fierce
battle over nectar that grants eternal life.

● Mysore Dasara is a 10-day festival celebrating the

victory of Goddess Durga over the demon
Mysore,
Mysore Mahishasura.
Karnatak
Dasara ● The Mysore Palace is brilliantly lit up, and various
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cultural and musical performances take place. The
grand procession on the last day is a major attraction.
 ● The Rath Yatra or Chariot Festival is a significant
event in Puri, organized in honor of Lord Jagannath, a
form of the deities Vishnu or Krishna.
Puri Rath Puri, ● The festival commemorates the lord's annual visit to
Yatra Odisha his aunt's home.
● Three richly decorated chariots, resembling temple
structures, are pulled through the streets in this
processional festival.

● Pushkar Camel Fair is one of the world's largest camel

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fairs and also a significant tourist attraction.
Pushkar Pushkar,
● It was originally started to attract local camel and
Camel Fair Rajasthan
cattle traders to do business during the holy Kartik

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Purnima festival.

● The Sonepur Cattle Fair is Asia's largest cattle fair,

traditionally known as a place where people traded
Sonepur Sonepur, elephants and horses.
Cattle Fair Bihar ● Held on Kartik Poornima (the full moon day) in the
an
month of November, it attracts visitors for its variety
of animals and various folk shows.

● The Surajkund Mela is an annual fair that showcases

Surajkund Faridabad the finest handlooms, handicrafts, and Indian cuisine.
Mela , Haryana ● Organized by Haryana Tourism, it aims to promote
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traditional Indian arts and crafts.

● Also known as the Vijaya Utsav, this festival

dates back to the Vijayanagara reign.
● It's a celebration of music, dance, drama, and
Hampi,
Hampi Festival processions, replete with fireworks, puppet
Karnataka
shows, and spectacular parades.
● The event glorifies the grandeur and glory of the
bygone era.

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 ● This ten-day event is an annual celebration that
starts on 18th February.
Agra, Uttar ● It's a vibrant platform that brings together
Taj Mahotsav
Pradesh India's finest crafts and cultural nuances.
● The festival also includes a food festival and
performances by world-renowned artists.

● Pongal is a four-day-long harvest festival

celebrated in Tamil Nadu, which falls in the
month of Thai (January-February) when crops
Pongal Tamil Nadu

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like rice, sugarcane, and turmeric are harvested.
● It's a celebration of prosperity and a way of
giving thanks to nature.

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● This ten-day festival celebrates the victory of
good over evil.
● In the eastern part of India, particularly in West
Bengal, it's celebrated as Durga Puja.
Navaratri/Dur
● In the north, it's celebrated as Navaratri (festival
ga Pan India
an
of nine nights) with much fasting and dancing.
Puja/Dussehra
● In the south, it's celebrated as a religious and
cultural festival, while in the west, especially in
Gujarat, it's celebrated with dance forms like
Garba and Dandiya Raas.
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Maharashtr ● This is a ten-day Hindu festival celebrated to

Ganesh a and other honor Lord Ganesha's birthday.
Chaturthi parts of ● Ganesha is known as the Lord of arts and
India sciences and as the God of wisdom.

● It is also referred to as the festival of lights

because oil lamps and candles are lit in homes.
Diwali Pan India
● The festival celebrates the victory of light over
darkness and good over evil.

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 ● This is one of the most important festivals in the
Islamic calendar and is observed with great
fanfare across India.
Eid-ul-Fitr Pan India ● The festival marks the end of Ramadan, a month
of fasting and prayers.
● The festival involves communal prayers, feasting,
and giving of gifts and charity to the poor.

Fair Location Story/Reference

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● Baisakhi, also known as Vaisakhi, is a harvest

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festival celebrated in the state of Punjab.
Baisakhi Punjab
● It is also of religious importance for Sikhs as it
marks the formation of the Khalsa in 1699.

Bihar,
● Chhath Puja is dedicated to the Sun God,
Uttar
thanking him for bestowing the bounties of life
Chhath Puja Pradesh,
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and requesting the granting of certain wishes.
and
Jharkhand

● Makar Sankranti marks the transition of the sun

Makar into the zodiac sign of Makara (Capricorn).
Sankranti Pan India ● This festival is dedicated to the Sun God and
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/Pongal marks the end of the winter solstice.

● In South India, it's celebrated as Pongal.

● Onam is a harvest festival celebrated in Kerala,

marking the homecoming of mythical King
Mahabali.
Onam Kerala
● It's a ten-day event with boat races, dance
events, music, and a grand feast known as
Onasadya.

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 ● Lohri is a Punjabi festival, marking the end of
winter and the arrival of longer days.
Lohri Punjab ● It is traditionally associated with the harvest of
the rabi crops and is celebrated with singing,
dancing, and lighting of bonfires.

● Raksha Bandhan is a festival celebrating the

bond between brothers and sisters.
● Sisters tie a protective thread around their
Raksha
Pan India brothers' wrists, who in return promise to protect
Bandhan

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them.
● Celebrated on purnima of Shravana month of
Hindu calendar.

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● Holi, also known as the festival of colors, is
celebrated at the end of winter, on the last full
moon day of the Hindu lunisolar calendar month,
Holi Pan India
which usually falls in late March.
● This festival celebrates the arrival of spring and
an
the end of winter.

● This festival celebrates the birth of Lord Krishna,

an avatar of Lord Vishnu.
● Devotees fast and stay up until midnight, the
Janmashtami Pan India
time when Krishna is believed to have been born.
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● Images of Krishna's infancy are placed in swings

and cradles in temples and homes.

Fair/Festiv
al Location Story/Reference

Ladakh,
● Losar is the Tibetan New Year's festival,
Sikkim,
Losar celebrated in regions that follow Tibetan
Arunachal
Buddhism.
Pradesh

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 ● It marks the beginning of the New Year and is
one of the most significant celebrations in
Ladakh, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh.

● The Hemis Festival is celebrated in the Hemis

Monastery in Ladakh in honor of the birth of
Hemis Padmasambhava, the founder of Tibetan
Ladakh
Festival Buddhism.
● It is marked by the Cham Dance performed by
the monks.

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● Tawang Festival is an annual festival in
Arunachal Pradesh that showcases the rich

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Tawang Arunachal
cultural heritage of the Monpa Tribe.
Festival Pradesh
● The festival includes traditional dances, religious
functions, and a fair.

● Bihu is a set of three important Assamese

festivals in the Indian state of Assam: Rongali or
an
Bohag Bihu, Kongali or Kati Bihu, and Bhogali or
Bihu Assam Magh Bihu.
● These festivals are associated with farming;
marking seeding time, completion of sowing,
and the end of the harvesting period.
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● Wangala Festival is a harvest festival celebrated

Wangala by the Garo tribe of Meghalaya.
Meghalaya
Festival ● It marks the end of the agricultural season and
is a thanksgiving to the Sun-God.

● Chhau is a semi-classical Indian dance with

martial, tribal, and folk traditions, with origins in
Chhau Odisha,
eastern India.
Dance Jharkhand,
● There are three regional variants (Seraikella
Festival West Bengal
Chhau, Mayurbhanj Chhau, and Purulia Chhau),
which are celebrated in the respective regions.

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 ● Nuakhai is an agricultural festival mainly
observed by people of Western Odisha to
Nuakhai Odisha welcome the new rice harvest.
● It is observed to thank mother nature for
providing food after the first crop harvest.

● The Ambubachi Mela is a Hindu mela held

annually at the Kamakhya Temple in Guwahati,
Ambubachi
Assam Assam.
Mela
● This yearly mela celebrates the menstruation of

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the Goddess Kamakhya.

● The Kang festival or the Rath Yatra in Manipur is

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one of the biggest religious events of the state.
Kang (Rath
Manipur ● Idols of Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra, and
Yatra)
Subhadra are placed on a chariot which is then
pulled by the devotees.

● Saga Dawa is a significant religious festival of

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the Buddhists and is celebrated in honor of the
Saga Dawa Sikkim life of Gautama Buddha.
● The festival marks his birth, enlightenment, and
attainment of Parinirvana.
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Fair/Festival Location Story/Reference

● Kharchi Puja is a week-long royal festival of

Tripura.
● The word 'Kharchi' is derived from two Tripura
Kharchi Puja Tripura words 'Khar' or sin and 'chi' or cleaning.
● The festival is meant to cleanse the sins of
mortal souls. Fourteen gods and goddesses are
worshiped during this festival.

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 ● Cheiraoba is the New Year of Manipur. People
clean and decorate their houses and prepare
special dishes which are first offered to various
deities.
Cheiraoba Manipur ● A part of the festival is the Chahi Taret
Khuntakpa, a procession by the locals, who
climb the hill ranges, believing that it would
enable them to rise to greater heights in their
lives.

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● Lai Haraoba is a festival celebrated by the
Meitei people of Manipur.
● It is a recollection of the creation stories

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Lai Haraoba Manipur
played by deities with the first origin of this
universe and evolution of the plants and
animals through the will of Atiya Sidaba.

● The Aoling Festival marks the New Year for the

Konyak tribe in Nagaland.
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● It celebrates the arrival of spring and the start
Aoling Festival Nagaland of a new year.
● It's the time when the Konyaks take a break
from their agricultural chores and celebrate life
with dance, meat, and rice beer.
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● Ziro Festival of Music is an outdoor music

festival held in the Ziro valley in the northeast
Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh.
Ziro Festival of Arunachal
● It showcases the independent music scene in
Music Pradesh
India. The festival spans four days and is
hosted by the members of the Apatani people
in Ziro.

Bumchu ● The Bumchu Festival is celebrated in the

Sikkim
Festival Tashiding Monastery in Sikkim.

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 ● Bumchu means 'sacred pot'. The festival is
associated with the water contained in a pot
that has remained sealed for a year.
● The level of water in the pot predicts the future.

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Fair/Festiva
l Location Story/Reference

● One of the oldest and most important

festivals in the state of Karnataka,
Bangalore Karaga is celebrated in
Karaga Karnataka
honor of the goddess Shakti.
● The festival symbolizes power and the
victory of good over evil.

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● Aadi Perukku, also known as Aadi
Monsoon Festival, is a Hindu Tamil

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Aadi festival celebrated on the 18th day of
Tamil Nadu
Perukku the Tamil month of Aadi.
● The festival pays tribute to water's
life-sustaining properties.

● Puthari, meaning 'new rice', is the

an
harvest festival of the Kodava people in
Coorg, Coorg.
Puthari
Karnataka ● During this festival, the first rice from
the new harvest is cooked and offered
to deities.
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● Makaravilakku is an annual festival held

in the famous Ayyappa temple at
Sabarimala in Kerala.
Makaravilak ● The festival includes the
Kerala
ku Thiruvabharanam (sacred ornaments of
Lord Ayyappan) procession and a
congregation at the hill shrine of
Sabarimala.

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 ● Ugadi is the New Year's Day for the
people of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana,
Andhra and Karnataka.
Pradesh, ● The day is observed by drawing colorful
Ugadi
Telangana, patterns on the floor called kolamulus,
Karnataka mango leaf decorations on doors,
shopping for new clothes and preparing
special dishes.

● Bathukamma is a floral festival

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celebrated by the Hindu women of
Bathukamm Telangana.
Telangana
a ● The festival is also known as the festival

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of flowers and it is a symbol of
Telangana's cultural identity.

● Bonalu is a Hindu festival where

Goddess Mahakali is worshiped.
● It is an annual festival celebrated in the
Bonalu Telangana
an
twin Cities Hyderabad and
Secunderabad and other parts of
Telangana.

RAPID FIRE-
Am

Name the four locations where the Kumbh Mela takes place.
Haridwar, Prayag (Prayagraj), Ujjain, and Nasik.

How often does the Maha Kumbh Mela occur?

Once in every 144 years.

Which fair in Rajasthan is known for its camel trading?

Pushkar Camel Fair.

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Where is the Sonepur Cattle Fair held?
Sonepur, Bihar.

Which state hosts the Surajkund Mela?

Haryana.

Which festival is dedicated to the Sun God and is celebrated in

Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Jharkhand?
Chhath Puja.

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What is the significance of Makar Sankranti/Pongal festival?

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It marks the transition of the sun into the zodiac sign of
Makara (Capricorn) and is associated with the end of the winter
solstice.

Which Indian festival is celebrated in honor of Lord Jagannath

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and involves the pulling of richly decorated chariots?
Puri Rath Yatra.

Which festival in Assam celebrates the menstruation of the

Goddess Kamakhya?
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Ambubachi Mela.

Which festival in Meghalaya marks the end of the agricultural

season and is a thanksgiving to the Sun-God?
Wangala Festival.

Which festival in Arunachal Pradesh showcases the cultural

heritage of the Monpa tribe?
Tawang Festival.

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Which festival in Ladakh honors the birth of Padmasambhava,
the founder of Tibetan Buddhism, and features the Cham
Dance?
Hemis Festival.

Which festival is celebrated in Sikkim to honor the life of

Gautama Buddha, marking his birth, enlightenment, and
attainment of Parinirvana?
Saga Dawa.

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Which festival in Manipur involves the pulling of chariots

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carrying idols of Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra, and Subhadra?
Kang (Rath Yatra).
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