In mid-April, the Bengalis usher in the new year with the Poila Baishakh celebrations, the Assamese in the northeast with Bihu festivals, and the Tamils in the South with Puthandu. Around this time, Hindus in Punjab get agog with Baisakhi, the springtime harvest festival marking the beginning of their new year, and the people of Kerala in the south of India welcome their new year - Vishu.
The Bright Baisakhi of Punjab
"Baisakhi", traditionally a harvest festival, is celebrated on the
13th of April every year, marking the Punjabi New Year. People celebrate the
joyous occasion by performing Bhangra and Giddha to the pounding rhythm of the
dhol and rings in the New Year. Baisakhi also marks the founding of the Khalsa
brotherhood by Sikh Guru Govind Singh.
Shubho Naba Barsha on Poila Baishakh in Bengal!
The first day of the Bengali new year falls on the 13th or 14th of April every
year. Called "Poila Baishakh," it's a state holiday in the eastern
state of West Bengal and a national holiday in Bangladesh. To welcome the new
year or "Naba Barsha", people clean and decorate their houses and
invoke Goddess Lakshmi, the bestower of wealth and prosperity. All new enterprises
begin on this auspicious day, as businessmen open their fresh ledgers with "Haal
Khata"- a ceremomy in which Lord Ganesha is summoned and customers are
invited to settle all their old dues and offered free refreshments. The people
of Bengal spend the day feasting and participating in cultural activities.
The Boisterous Bohaag Bihu of Assam
The northeastern state of Assam ushers in the new year with the spring festival
of Bohaag Bihu or Rongali Bihu, which marks the onset of a new agricultural
cycle. Fairs are organized where people revel in gay games. The celebrations
go on for days together, and it's a good time for young people to find a companion
of their own choice! Young belles in traditional attire sing "Bihugeets"
and dance the traditional "Mukoli Bihu". The festive food of the occasion
is the "pitha" or rice cakes. People visit each other's houses, exchange
gifts and sweets and, greet each other a Happy New Year!
Kerala, Wish You a Happy Vishu!
"Vishu" is the first day in the first month of Medam in Kerala, the
beautiful coastal state in southern India. The people of this state - the Malayalees
- begin the day early in the morning by visiting the temple and seeing any auspicious
sight, which they call "Vishukani." The day is full of the elaborate
traditional rituals with tokens called "Vishukaineetam", usually in
form of coins, being distributed among the downtrodden. People wear new clothes
- "Kodi vastram" - and celebrate the day by bursting firecrackers
and enjoying a variety of delicacies at an elaborate lunch called the "sadya"
with family and friends. The afternoon and evening is spent in the "Vishuwela".
