Indian villages celebrate some of the unique festivals that reflect the rural charm and simplicity of the Indian people. The villages of the Indian states are special for their distinguished fairs and festivals, however, festivals like Republic Day, Diwali, Gandhi Jayanti , Eid-ul- Fitr, Independence Day and Janmashtami are celebrated nationwide. Besides the religious festivals, cultural ones are also predominant in the Indian villages.
North Indian Village Festivals
The composite culture and the festivals of the villages in North Indian states are closely associated with the Himalayas and sacred rivers, passing across the states of Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh. Most of the festivals celebrated in these villages are common and similar in their themes. Karva Chauth, Vasant Panchami, Diwali, Lohri, Buddha Purnima, Kheer Bhawani are the commonly celebrated all across northern Indian villages.
East Indian Village Festivals
East Indian states of West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand and Odisha comprise the villages in this region. Cuisine plays a vital role in the eastern Indian village festivals. An important feature of the festivals in the villages of eastern Indian states is that these are diverse. While the most popular festivals celebrated in the villages of West Bengal are the Durga Puja and Kali Puja, Ratha Yatra is celebrated with lot of fervour in Odisha. The typical rural festivals of eastern India are Jatra Festival, Jhoolan, Poush Mela and Vasanta Utsav. Cultural festivals are also an important part of the East Indian village festivals.
North-East Indian Village Festivals
The north-eastern states of India are Nagaland, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Tripura, Sikkim and Manipur. The culture of these north-eastern villages vastly depends on the migrated tribal culture. The villages of Mizoram, Meghalaya and Nagaland celebrate some tribal festivals like Chapchar Kut, Mim Kut, Ningol Chakouba, Heikru Hitongba among many others.
South Indian Village Festivals
The villages of South India belong to the states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. The South Indian culture mostly includes festivals that are related to their religion and water sports. Their common festivals are Onam, Pongal and numerous festivals on music and dance are quite popular in south Indian villages.
Central Indian Village Festivals
The Central Indian villages belong to the states of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. Arwa Teej, Kajri Navami, Bhojali and Chherta are the common festivals of the rural areas in central India. Splendour, traditional songs, dances and colourful dresses are indispensable from these Indian village festivals.
West Indian Village Festivals
The West Indian states of Maharashtra, Goa and Gujaratv have some of the most colourful and cultural villages, celebrating the traditional festivals. These festivities date back to the customs of the early raja and maharaja eras. Besides celebrating the popular Hindu festivals, Jain and Buddhist festivals are also integrated in the culture of these villages.
India is a land of unique festivals, retaining its culture and historical significance; the Indian villages are no exception.
