Cultural Activities (Traditional General Knowledge) (Part-VII)

Onam is the biggest and most important festival in Kerala. It is also called Shasyotsav (a festival celebrating the harvesting of crops). People of every caste and religion in Kerala celebrate the harvest festival with great reverence and gaiety. The harvest festival also includes festivals like Baisakhi, Pongal, Rongali, Bihu etc.

Onam is an annual Hindu festival with origins in the state of Kerala in India. It is a ten-day harvest festival that is celebrated with great enthusiasm and traditional fervor by the people of Kerala. The festival is celebrated in the Malayalam month of Chingam, which usually falls in August or September according to the Gregorian calendar. Onam is believed to be the homecoming of King Mahabali, a legendary ruler who is said to have ruled over Kerala in ancient times.

Boat races in Kerala are a special feature of Onam. Onam is the harvest festival of Kerala, celebrated to welcome King Mahabali.

Losar festival is celebrated in Sikkim.

Drukpa Tsechi, a festival celebrated in Sikkim, is associated with Lord Buddha. According to the English Calendar, it falls somewhere around July or August each year in Sikkim.

The Lepcha community of Sikkim is traditionally associated with the folk dance known as ‘Chu-Faat’.

People from various parts of the Ladakh region annually celebrate the Losar Festival on the 1st Day of the Eleventh Month of the Tibetan Calendar, correlating to the date in the Gregorian calendar. The celebrations continue for 3-9 days in different parts of Ladakh. The festival is regarded as the most important socio-religious event in Ladakh.