Plan your trip · Bishnupur
What's on in Bishnupur
Bishnupur's calendar has its own fixtures, quite apart from the big Bengal festivals. The December Mela is the one most visitors plan around.
Nothing dated is confirmed for Bishnupur right now, so here is the year instead — the fixtures that come round annually, and what each one means for a visit.
The year in Bishnupur
Bishnupur packs most of its outdoor calendar into the cooler months; the pre-monsoon peak is hot enough that daytime processions are genuinely hard going. Broadly, Oct – Mar is when visiting is most comfortable here, and that is when the calendar is busiest — which also means accommodation is most expensive and books furthest ahead.
Most of these follow lunar calendars and move by weeks from year to year, so treat the windows below as the season rather than the date, and confirm the year’s dates before you book around one.
Across West Bengal
Durga Puja
🗓️ September–OctoberKolkata becomes an open-air art exhibition of themed pandals, best walked after dark.
Planning: Queues at the famous pandals run past three hours on the last evenings, and mobile networks fail in the crowds — agree a meeting point.
Nationwide
Diwali
🗓️ October–NovemberThe biggest holiday of the year — lamps, sweets, fireworks and a week of visiting family. Cities are lit up and markets stay open late.
Holi
🗓️ MarchColoured powder and water, thrown at anyone within reach, mostly through the morning.
Navratri and Dussehra
🗓️ September–OctoberNine nights of fasting, music and dance, ending with Dussehra. What it looks like changes completely by region — garba in Gujarat, pandals in Bengal, processions in the south.
Eid al-Fitr
🗓️ shifts ~11 days earlier each yearThe end of Ramadan. The old quarters of Delhi, Hyderabad, Lucknow and Bhopal are at their best in the evenings through the preceding month, when food streets run past midnight.
Makar Sankranti and Pongal
🗓️ mid-JanuaryThe harvest turn, marked with kites in the west and north and four days of Pongal in Tamil Nadu.
Bishnupur Mela
The Bishnupur Mela has run every year since 1988 and usually takes place from 23 to 27 December on the high-school ground near Rasmancha. It brings together Baluchari weavers, terracotta and bell-metal makers and other craftspeople with evening music and dance, drawing on the town's classical gharana. It is the best time to buy crafts and the hardest time to find a room. Book early and confirm the year's dates.
Jhapan
Jhapan is a festival for Manasa, the snake goddess, held on the last day of the Bengali month of Shraban, usually in mid-August. Snake handlers known as ojhas parade with drums and devotional songs and show their skill with live snakes, mostly in and around Bishnupur. It is a folk festival with deep roots in the area. Keep a respectful distance from the snakes and the crowds.
Durga Puja at Mrinmoyee
Across Bengal, Durga Puja falls in September or October. In Bishnupur the focus is the Mrinmoyee temple, where the Malla royal family's puja is said to date back to 997. It runs for longer than the usual five days, starting well before the Puja elsewhere, and keeps customs of its own. The temples page has more on the temple.
Ras and Dol
Rasmancha was built for the Ras festival, held on the full moon of the month of Kartik, usually in November. The great gathering of Krishna images there ended in 1932, but Ras is still observed at the town's Vaishnava temples. Dol, the Bengali spring festival of colour that coincides with Holi, is marked with Krishna worship in February or March.
Planning around festivals
Most of these dates follow the lunar calendar and move from year to year. Confirm them before you book. December is also the most comfortable month to visit, so a Mela trip gives you good weather as well. See the best time to visit for the seasons.
Questions
Bishnupur — FAQ
When is the Bishnupur Mela held?
It is usually held from 23 to 27 December on the high-school ground near Rasmancha. Confirm the year's dates before you book, as schedules can change.
What happens at the Jhapan festival?
Snake handlers parade through the area with drums and songs in honour of Manasa, the snake goddess, and display live snakes. It falls on the last day of Shraban, usually in mid-August.
Is the Ras festival still held at Rasmancha?
No. The gathering of Krishna images at Rasmancha ended in 1932, and the building is now a protected monument. Ras is still observed at the working temples in town.
Is Durga Puja in Bishnupur different from Kolkata?
Yes. Kolkata is known for huge themed pandals. In Bishnupur the heart of the Puja is the old royal worship at the Mrinmoyee temple, which lasts longer and follows older family customs.