India is one country where every religion and community celebrates its culture. There are festivals of India state-wise, religion-based, and community-wise. So, every day is a new celebration in this country. You also enjoy lots of Gazetted holidays that allow you to plan a trip across the country.

1. FESTIVALS OF INDIA
India is one country where every religion and community
celebrates their culture. There are festivals of India state wise,
religion-based, and community-wise. So, every day is a new
celebration in this country. You also enjoy lots of Gazetted
holidays that gives you an opportunity to plan a trip across the
country

2. DIWALI
• Diwali, or Dipawali , is India's biggest and most important holiday of the year.
The festival gets its name from the row ( avail ) of clay lamps ( deepa ) that
Indians light outside their homes to symbolize the inner light that protects from
spiritual darkness. Although the festival originated with Hindus, Diwali is
celebrated by most Indians of all faiths including Jains, Buddhists and Sikhs. In
Jainism, it marks the nirvana or spiritual awakening of Mahavira, according to
the HAF. For Sikhs, it celebrates the day a major guru was freed from imprisonment.

3. HOLI
•
The origin of Holi is believed to be before the birth of Christ. Legend goes that
Lord Vishnu had assassinated the younger brother of the demon lord,
Hiranyakashipu. Apart from avenging his brother's death, the demon king had
the ulterior motive of ruling the heaven, the earth, and the underworld by
defeating Vishnu
Holi is a Hindu festival that celebrates spring, love, and new life. Some families
hold religious ceremonies, but for many Holi is more a time for fun. It's a
colourful festival, with dancing, singing and throwing of powder paint and
coloured water. Holi is also known as the "festival of colours ".

4. CHRISTMAS
Christmas is celebrated to remember the birth of Jesus Christ, who
Christians believe is the Son of God. The 'Christ-Mass' service was the only one
that was allowed to take place after sunset (and before sunrise the next day), so
people had it at Midnight! So we get the name Christ-Mass, shortened to
Christmas. The church in Rome began formally celebrating Christmas on
December 25 in 336, during the reign of the emperor Constantine. As
Constantine had made Christianity the effective religion of the empire, some
have speculated that choosing this date had the political motive of weakening
the established pagan celebrations.

5. DUSSEHRA
•
Dussehra, also called Dasara or Vijayadashami, in Hinduism, holiday marking the triumph
of Rama, an avatar of Vishnu, over the 10-headed demon king Ravana, who abducted
Rama's wife, Sita. The festival's name is derived from the Sanskrit words dasha (“ten”)
and hara (“defeat”).
Dussehra, also known as Dasara or Vijayadashami in different parts of India, is a popular
festival among Hindus as it signifies good winning over evil. The word Vijayadashami is
made up of two words-- Vijaya meaning victory and Dashami meaning the tenth.

6. DURGA PUJA
• Durga Puja, also known as Durgotsava, or Sharodotsava, is an annual
Hindu festival originating in the Indian subcontinent which reveres and
pays homage to the Hindu goddess, Durga. According to the traditional
Hindu rituals, there are four things that go into the making of the idols for
Durga Puja - mud from the river Ganges, cow dung, cow urine and soil
from nishiddho pallis or forbidden territories. This soil is known as punya
maati and it comes from the homes of prostitutes.

7. GANESH CHATURTHI
Ganesh Chaturthi, in Hinduism, 10-day festival marking the birth of the elephant-
headed deity Ganesha, the god of prosperity and wisdom. ... There they are
immersed, a ritual symbolizing Ganesha's homeward journey to Mount Kailas—
the abode of his parents, Shiva and Parvati. This year it will be celebrated
on September 10. This 11 day festival will end on September 21. Lord Ganesh is
worshiped on this day. This festival is mainly celebrated in Maharashtra, Gujarat,
Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh.

8. EID-UL-FITR
The religious festival Eid al-Fitr, or the “Festival of Breaking the Fast,” is one of two
major holidays celebrated by Muslims around the world. In the United States, Eid al-
Fitr 2021 begins on the evening of Wednesday, May 12 and ends on the evening of
Thursday, May 13. Also known as the “Lesser Eid,” Eid al-Fitr commemorates the
end of the fasting month of Ramdan. An occasion for special prayers, family visits,
gift-giving and charity, it takes place over one to three days, beginning on the first
day of Shawwal, the 10th month in the Islamic calenda

9. ONAM
• Onam festival is celebrated to honour the kind-hearted and much-beloved
demon King Mahabali , who is believed to return to Kerala during this festival.
According to Vaishnava mythology, King Mahabali defeated the Gods and began
ruling over all three worlds. King Mahabali was a demon king who belonged to
the Asura tribe.
According to ancient manuscripts, this day marks the annual homecoming of
the famous king Mahabali. The first day of Onam, also known as Uthraadam, is
believed to be Onam eve. It is on this day when King Mahabali returned to
Kerala. All the days hold special significance related to the celebrations.

10. PONGAL
Pongal is also referred to as Thai Pongal is a multi-day Hindu harvest festival of South
India, particularly in Tamil community. Five thousand years later, in south India, some
genius of a cook 'accidentally' boiled rice and Moong dal together, to create the Pongal.
This was such a hit that much later, around 200 BC, the ‘ Indravizhya ' festival celebrated
at Poombuhar came to be called 'Pongal'.

11. GURUPURAB
Gurupurab is an important festival for the followers of Sikhism and they
celebrate it fervently. Guru Nanak Jayanti or Guru Nanak Dev Ji Gurupurab is the
festival where Sikhs celebrate the birth of their first guru — Guru Nanak. The
literal meaning of the word Gurupurab is 'the day of Guru’
"Gurpurab" is made of two words-- "Gur", which means Guru or master, and
"Purab", which means parv in Hindi, meaning day. So Gurpurab is the day
dedicated to the Guru. Festivities on Guru Nanak Jayanti or Gurpurab are
centred around the birth anniversaries of the ten Sikh gurus.