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Indian New Year

It is a known fact that India is not just a country, but a civilization that has various multidimensional layers. Today, it is home to people of numerous castes, creeds, and ethnicities. Thus, each of these distinct human populations has a wide range of festivals and important occasions, which are celebrated sometimes regionally and at times, throughout the country due to the intermingling of various cultures. As such, India is also known as the "Land of Festivals". New Year is, indeed, an important occasion in the lives of Indians and today, as the country officially follows the Gregorian calendar, January 1 is celebrated as New Year's Day for all official purposes.

However, even today, many ethnic groups celebrate New Year as per their own auspicious religious calendars because of which celebrations of the day are carried out on different days by different groups. For instance, Diwali is the day on which majority of the Hindu population of the country celebrates New Year as per the Hindu religious calendar. Despite this, with the onset of rapid globalization, the country is going under the phase of fast paced urbanization. The large cosmopolitan cities of the country, like Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore and Chennai, are the front runners in celebration of the Gregorian New Year. Here, on December 31, New Year's Eve celebrations include huge live concerts. One can watch mesmerizing performances of various famous celebrities from the Indian film and music industry. These huge public celebrations see large crowds from all sections of society. Many people, who prefer a more personal see-off to the passing year, host private New Year parties for their near and dear ones.

Most people across the country wish each other Happy New Year on January 1, irrespective of their religious or cultural beliefs as this day is considered a secular event. People send each other wonderful New Year messages, greeting cards, and gifts to celebrate this joyous occasion. Various New Year events organized on New Year's Eve are broadcasted live by different prime channels across the country. Many people opt to stay at home and watch these special entertaining New Year shows with their family on the television. Besides this, the western concept of making resolutions on this day has also been adopted in urban centers, with the most common resolutions being losing weight, developing good habits, and working hard. However, this is just one side of the coin, while most of the country celebrates New Year as per their traditional religious calendars, the details of which can be read in the following lines.

Traditional Indian New Year
One of the most celebrated festivals in India, Diwali is considered to be the New Year's Day as per the Hindu lunar calendar. This "festival of lights" is celebrated with great zeal and fervor across India and signifies the triumph of good over evil. Though the basic essence of the festival remains the same, the methods of its celebrations vary from region to region. The origin of the festival is deeply imbedded in the Hindu religion. Thus, people spend the day worshipping deities, bursting firecrackers, and exchanging gifts with friends, relatives and acquaintances. In most of the North Indian belt, it is believed that the first Diwali was celebrated by the people of Ayodhya to welcome their beloved crown prince Lord Rama, who returned to his kingdom after an exile of fourteen years. The festival of Diwali is celebrated usually between the months of October and November.

Consecutive to the festival of Diwali, eastern India celebrates the festival of Durga Puja, wherein various forms of Mother Goddess are worshipped, with the festivities lasting for around two to three days. On the other hand, in South India, the New Year is celebrated in the month of Chittirai, which as per the Gregorian calendar occurs from April 14 to May 14. New Year is popularly known as "Vishu" and "Tamizh puthaandu" here and is usually celebrated on April 14. A lot of charming rituals as well as customs are associated with this day, like detailed puja ceremonies organized in most of the households and lavish traditional feasts. The gateways of homes are traditionally festooned with intricate and colorful floor art designs, known as rangolis called 'kolam'.

In the western region of the country, in the state of Maharashtra, New Year is celebrated in the form of Gudi Padwa, whereas in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, the day is known as Ugadi. The celebration time of both is the same and falls in the month of Chaitra. The Kashmiris refer New Year as 'Navroh' and celebrate it on the first day of Chaitra. The Oriya people celebrate New Year as Mahabishuba Sankranti and, as per their tradition, prepare a sweet drink, known as Pana on this day. They make an offering of this drink to various deities. It is quite clear that New Year is celebrated in many distinct ways and on different dates across India, but the interesting fact is that its essence of saying goodbye to the old and welcoming the new remains the same throughout the country, despite the cultural and religious divide.

http://www.indobase.com/holidays/new-year/indian-new-year.html

Hindu New Year

India, being a vast country of immense heterogeneity, is known far and wide for its enchanting diversity and colorful splendor. It is made up of numerous regional and cultural variations. Its dynamic resplendence is exemplified best by the beauty of its vast cultural richness. Even though there exists a unified official calendar of the Hindus, known as the 'Indian National Calendar', inter-regional variants make the country all the more versatile. As a result, you can find different religions and regions boasting of their own unique rituals, colors, feasting and music. Even festivals are celebrated at different times of the year and in different ways according to the regional culture. This is true with New Year as well. Though Hinduism is the religion that is followed by the largest percentage of people in India, even within the Hindu community New Year is not celebrated at the same time of the year and in the same fashion. New Year in India has different names in different states and is also celebrated in very different traditional ways. For instance, the Kashmiri Hindus celebrate their new year 'Navreh' in mid-March while the Sindhis also celebrate 'Cheti Chand' around the same time.

In West Bengal, which is in the eastern part of India, New Year is celebrated during spring. People decorate their houses with colorful flowers that are pink, red, purple and white in color. Women wear clothes that are yellow in color. This color is symbolic of spring. In Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh in the south of India, New Year is celebrated in the spring too. On New Year's Day, it is customary for people to eat a small helping of a salad made of neem leaves, jaggery, raw mangoes and bananas. By eating this on New Year's Day, the person is symbolically accepting all the bitter and sweet things that are likely to come his way throughout the New Year. In Kerala, in the southernmost part of India, on the night before New Year's Day, mothers prepare a special tray consisting of special food, fruits, flowers and gifts. This tray is the first thing that one should see on New Year's Day. So, as soon as the children are awake, they are led with their eyes closed to the tray.

In central India, orange flags are hoisted from buildings and homes on New Year's Day. In Gujarat, which is in western India, New Year is celebrated in the end of October, on the day that coincides with Diwali. Diwali is an important Hindu festival, but in Gujarat it is celebrated as New Year's Day as well. People light little oil lamps on and around their houses to welcome Goddess Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth on this day.

Thus, in India, the Hindu New Year is celebrated on different days throughout the calendar year as a result of vast cultural diversity.