Maharashtra is a land of rich cultural heritage and
traditions. The diverse form of landscape and environment make the
state's culture more colourful. Maharashtrians celebrate every fair with
great fervour and enthusiasm. The sacred Kumb Mela at Nashik that comes
after every twelve years is regarded to be the most important religious
fair in Maharashtra.
As Maharashtrians have great belief of Lord Ganesh, Ganesh Utsav at
Sangli and Pune are the fairs that Maharashtrians celebrate with great
fun fare, which are attended by the maximum number of visitors even from
foreign countries. The Maharashtra government in collaboration with the
Union government is promoting the Pune fair as a major tourists
attraction.
Other important temple fairs include Changdeo fair at the Markandeya
Temple near Edlabad, Kiran Utsav at the Mahalaxmi Temple at Kolhapur,
Rathyatra at the Kalaram Temple in Nashik, and the Shrirama Rathotsava
fair and the Navaratra Mahalaxmi fair at the Navaratra Mahalaxmi temple
in Jalgaon.
The Khuldabad Urs is a festival for Muslims; celebrated for five days.
Mount Mary Festival, which is held every year at Bandra, Mumbai attracts
huge crowds of the city. The Snake festival at Battis Shirala town too
attracts large number of tourists from India and aboard.
Changdeo Fair
Changdeo in Maharashtra is regarded to be a holy place because of Purna and Tapi rivers. People flock here once a year to take a holy dip.
Ganesh Chaturthi
Ganesha festival, also known as 'Ganesh Utsav' is the biggest festival in Sangli and the nearby areas of Maharashtra.
Kala Ghoda Festival
Kala Ghoda Festival is held on Sundays between November and January months near Jehangir Art Gallery at Mumbai.
Khuldabad Urs
Khulabad is a place situated at a distance of 5 km from the Ellora caves and 22 km from Aurangabad on the Aurangabad-Ellora route.
Kiran Utsav
Kiran Utsav is one of the popular festivals in India. It is organized at Mahalaxmi Temple of Kolhapur district in Maharashtra on 31st January, 1st February, and 9th, 10th, and 11th November every year.
Nashik Kumbh Mela
Kumbh Mela is the most important Hindu spiritual gathering in India that comes once every three years, rotating between four major Hindu pilgrim centers of India - Allahabad, Haridwar, Ujjain and Nasik.
Mount Mary Festival
Mount Mary's Festival is celebrated for one week during September at Mount Mary Church, Bandra in the suburbs of Mumbai, Maharashtra.
Navaratra Mahalaxmi Fair
Navaratra Mahalaxmi Fair is celebrated for ten days from Ashvina Sud.1 to Ashvina Sud. 10 at Navaratra Mahalaxmi Temple of Jalgaon district in Maharashtra.
Pune Festival
Pune festival is held between August and September during Ganesh Mahotsav. It is the biggest festival of Pune.
Rath Yatra
A festival called Janmotsava is celebrated at Sansthan Shri Kalaram Mandir, Panchavati, Nashik every year. The festival, which spans 15 days begin from the first day of Chaitra till Chaitra Purnima.
Shrirama Rathotsava Fair
Shrirama Rathotsava Mandir, which belongs to the Peshwa period, is located near Jalgaon, Maharashtra. Shrirama Rathotsava Fair is celebrated annually in this temple between October and November months to give a special veneration to the deities.
Snake Festival
Snakes festival is celebrated for 8-10 days at the small town of Battis Shirala, Maharashtra, which is 50 km from Kolhapur. The festival is celebrated on the onset of the monsoons,
Know about various fairs and festivals that are celebrated in the state of Maharashtra, India.