Baisakhi

Hey its time for another festival in India... yep its Baisakhi on the 14th of April.
It is one of the mega events in India. Baisakhi is also a harvest festival, it also the time when the harvest is ready to cut and store to sell. In fact it is celebrated as new year day all over the country under different names. People all over the India celebrate this day with great enthusiasm and spirit.
For the Sikh community, the day is very special. The last Guru of Sikh community, Guru Gobind Singh organised the sikhs into Khalsa on this day. Actually by doing so he cast aside the differences of high and low and established that all human beings are equal. Sikhs celebrate the day by visiting Gurudwaras, merry making and feasting.

In the Northern part of India, it is a beginning of a new year. People celebrate with folk dance, music and feasting. Men and women wears colourful clothes and engrossed themselves in robust bhangra and gidda. There are elaborate meals of chana, bhatura, Sarson da Saag, tandoori roti and mithais of vast variety.

In Bengal the day is celebrated as Nava barsha or Poila baisakh. People embrace each other and enjoy variety of yummy food. People of Assam celebrate the day as Rongali Bihu. Folk songs and bihu dance are the prime attractions of the festival. People of Bihar celebrates Baisakhi as Vaishakha in honour of the Sun God, Surya while the people of Kerala celebrates it as Vishu and Tamil Nadu as Puthandu. In Kashmir, a ceremonial bath and general festivity mark Baisakhi while in Himachal Pradesh people flock to the temple of Jwalamukhi and take a holy dip in the Hot Springs.