Dussehra, Diwali, Chhath 2026 kab hai? Every festival date from Mahalaya to Dev Deepawali

Short answer: Navratri begins tomorrow, Sunday 11 October. Dussehra is Tuesday 20 October, Diwali is Sunday 8 November, and Chhath runs from 13 to 16 November. The full list, with tithi, muhurat and a live countdown, is in our Festival Kab Hai 2026 tool. You can filter it by state and add any date to your phone's calendar.

Why do people keep asking "kab hai"?

Because the answer isn't always a single date. Hindu festivals follow the tithi, the lunar day, and a tithi can begin at any hour. Whether a festival lands on one date or the next depends on where the tithi falls against sunrise, sunset or a set part of the day, such as the afternoon aparahna for Dussehra or the evening pradosh for Diwali. Different panchangs and panjikas sometimes make that call differently.

This year, most of the big dates line up neatly. A few don't, and we list them below.

Navratri and Dussehra

Pratipada begins at 9:19 PM tonight (10 October) in New Delhi, which is why some people wonder whether Navratri starts today. It doesn't. Ghatasthapana is a daytime ritual, so it happens on the morning of Sunday 11 October. Drik Panchang gives the main muhurat in New Delhi as 6:19 to 10:12 AM, with Abhijit Muhurat from 11:44 AM to 12:31 PM as a back-up.

Dussehra is on Tuesday 20 October. Dashami tithi begins at 12:50 PM that day and covers the afternoon window that decides the date. The Vijay Muhurat in New Delhi is 1:59 to 2:45 PM. It is also a central government holiday. Maha Navami falls on the same date this year, because Navami tithi ends just before 1 PM on the 20th.

Durga Puja: where the calendars split

Drik Panchang's Kolkata calendar runs Shashthi on Fri 16 Oct, Saptami Sun 18 Oct, Ashtami Mon 19 Oct, Navami Tue 20 Oct and Bijoya Dashami Wed 21 Oct.

The wrinkle is Saturday 17 October. Shashthi tithi touches the sunrise on both the 16th and the 17th. Panjikas that follow Surya Siddhanta, such as Gupta Press, treat the 17th as Saptami. Bihar's state government has also put its Durga Puja (Saptami) holiday on 17 October. In practice, pandals in Kolkata are busy every day from the 16th to the 21st. Puja Parikrama lists the Sandhi Puja time as 10:29 to 11:17 AM on 19 October by Bisuddha Siddhanta, or 7:25 to 8:13 AM by Surya Siddhanta.

Karwa Chauth

Thursday 29 October. In Delhi, Drik Panchang puts the puja muhurat at 5:38 to 6:56 PM and moonrise at 8:17 PM. Moonrise differs by city, so check the time for yours.

Diwali week

Two things to know. First, Drik Panchang lists Narak Chaturdashi on the same day as Diwali (8 November) this year, and calls Saturday 7 November "Kali Chaudas". Some calendars still mark Choti Diwali on the 7th. Second, Amavasya runs from 11:27 AM on 8 November to 12:31 PM on 9 November. That is why a few states' bank-holiday lists differ, so check yours on the RBI list before planning a bank visit.

Chhath Puja

Drik Panchang puts Chhath (Surya Shashthi) on Sunday 15 November, the day of the evening arghya. In Bihar, Kharna is a restricted holiday for state employees, and banks are shut on 15 and 16 November, according to the state's 2026 list.

Dev Deepawali and Guru Nanak Jayanti

Both are on Tuesday 24 November, which is Kartik Purnima. In Varanasi, Drik Panchang puts the Dev Deepawali pradosh muhurat at 5:08 to 7:47 PM. Purnima ends at 8:23 PM that night, so the lamps are lit on the 24th, not the 25th. Guru Nanak's birthday is a central government holiday.

The full calendar

1. Sat 10 Oct

   Mahalaya. Pitru Paksha ends and Devi Paksha begins.

2. Sun 11 Oct

   Sharad Navratri begins (Ghatasthapana).

3. Fri 16 Oct

   Durga Puja: Maha Shashthi (Bilva Nimantran) in Kolkata.

4. Sun 18 Oct

   Maha Saptami (Drik Panchang). Some panjikas and Bihar's holiday list: Sat 17 Oct.

5. Mon 19 Oct

   Maha Ashtami and Sandhi Puja.

6. Tue 20 Oct

   Maha Navami and Dussehra (Vijayadashami).

7. Wed 21 Oct

   Bijoya Dashami and Durga Visarjan in Bengal.

8. Thu 29 Oct

   Karwa Chauth.

9. Fri 6 Nov

   Dhanteras.

10. Sun 8 Nov

    Diwali (Lakshmi Puja), Narak Chaturdashi and Tamil Deepavali.

11. Tue 10 Nov

    Govardhan Puja, Gujarati New Year and Bali Pratipada.

12. Wed 11 Nov

    Bhai Dooj.

13. Fri 13 – Mon 16 Nov

    Chhath: Nahay Khay, Kharna, Sandhya Arghya, Usha Arghya.

14. Tue 24 Nov

    Dev Deepawali (Varanasi) and Guru Nanak Jayanti.

Muhurat times are in IST for the city named, and shift by a few minutes elsewhere. If your family follows a different panjika, go by it.