September 2012

1. FESTIVALS: Sharadiya Navaratra commences on Aśvina Śukla Pratipada, falling on October 16 this year, and culminate in Durga Puja and Dussehra. In the west, particularly in Gujarat, Navratri is celebrated with the famous Garba and Dandiya-Raas dance.  The last four days of Sharad Navaratri, in the states of Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Orissa and Assam in the east Bharat are celebrated as Durga Puja. Exquisitely crafted and decorated life-size clay idols of the Goddess Durga depicting her slaying the demon Mahishasura are set up in temples and other places. Sharadiya Navaratra is also popular among Bharatiya communities around the world including the UK, Canada and USA.