Festivals Through the Year

From Sankranti kites to Diwali lamps — the Telugu festival calendar. 7 steps, about 40 minutes.

1. Sankranti: Begin in January with THE Telugu festival: kites, muggu, and the sun turning north.
2. Maha Shivaratri: A night of staying awake for Shiva — and the story of the poison he drank.
3. Holi: Spring explodes in color — and behind it, the story of a boy who would not stop praying.
4. Ugadi: Telugu new year: neem and jaggery in one chutney, because a year holds both.
5. Vinayaka Chavithi: Ganesha comes home for ten days. Clay idols, kudumulu, and one moon you shouldn't look at.
6. Navaratri & Bathukamma: Nine nights for the goddess — Bathukamma flowers stacked toward the sky.
7. Diwali: And the lamps of Diwali — where the Ramayana's ending becomes everyone's beginning.