Ravan dahan ka samay 2026: Pradosh kaal starts 5:47 PM in Delhi today. City-wise times and where to watch

Short answer: Ravan dahan is tonight, Tuesday 20 October 2026, after sunset. In Delhi, Pradosh kaal begins at 5:47 PM, and Live Hindustan puts the best window at 5:47 to 8:23 PM. Your city's start time is your local sunset, so it's earlier in the east and later in the west. In practice, the effigy burns when your Ramlila committee says it does, so use the times below to plan your evening, not to the minute.

Ravan dahan ka samay in your city

The sunset times are my calculation, using the standard NOAA solar formula. For New Delhi it gives 5:47 PM, the same as Drik Panchang-based reports in ET and Live Hindustan, which is why I trust it for the other cities. Vijay Muhurat times for 12 cities are from ET's city table.

Why today, and why after sunset

This year Dashami tithi doesn't line up neatly with the calendar. It starts at 12:50 PM today and ends at 2:11 PM tomorrow (Drik Panchang). That's what caused the "20 or 21 October?" confusion all week.

The rule settles it. Pt Narendra Upadhyay, quoted by Live Hindustan, says the shastras put Ravan dahan in Pradosh kaal, the period starting at sunset, while Dashami is on. On 21 October, Dashami is over by early afternoon, so there's no Dashami-plus-Pradosh evening. Only today has one. That's why almost every panchang and Ramlila committee has gone with 20 October.

The day-time windows are for the puja, not the burning:

One more detail that's easy to miss: Shravana nakshatra ends at 6:02 PM today (Drik Panchang). Some families prefer Vijayadashami rituals under Shravana. In Delhi that leaves a 15-minute window, 5:47 to 6:02 PM, when sunset, Dashami and Shravana all overlap. Live Hindustan also mentions 5:47–6:12 PM as a possible Ravan dahan slot.

Bengal is different. Bijoya Dashami, with Durga visarjan and sindoor khela, is on Wednesday 21 October (Drik Panchang, ET). If you're in Kolkata, Durga Puja's farewell is tomorrow, even though Ravan dahan events in the city are today.

Where to watch, and the times organisers have announced

Only a few venues have published a time, and I've listed only those. Everywhere else, check your committee's notice or ask at the ground.

Delhi

• Dwarka Sector 10 Ramlila Ground (Dwarka Shri Ramlila Society): a 221-ft Ravan, with 90-ft Meghnad and Kumbhakaran. It took three months, 120 artisans, about 7 tonnes of iron and around ₹40 lakh, and will be set alight by remote control, with green crackers (India Today). Time Out lists the programme from 8 PM. Metro: Dwarka Sector 10.
• Luv Kush Ramlila, Red Fort grounds: runs till 21 Oct, from 6 PM (Time Out). Metro: Lal Qila.
• Shri Ram Dharmik Leela Committee, Keshav Puram: its published schedule puts the final battle and Ravan dahan at 5 PM today (Time Out). That's before sunset, so expect the effigy to go up right around dusk.
• Ramlila Maidan (near Ajmeri Gate), Punjabi Bagh and Sagarpur also hold Dussehra finales (NDTV, Time Out).

Pune (NDTV): Kothrud, near Joshi Museum on Paud Road, 5:30 PM; Mahalaxmi Lawns, Kharadi, 5:30 PM (reported entry ₹600); Saras Baug, 6 PM.

Hyderabad: Brahma Kumaris Shanti Sarovar, Gachibowli, programme with Ravana dahan from 6 PM (NDTV).

Mumbai and Bengaluru: NDTV points to Girgaon Chowpatty and Shivaji Park, and Palace Grounds and RR Nagar, but no times have been published.

Panchkula: a second 221-ft effigy at Shalimar Ground, Sector 5, built by the Shri Mata Mansa Devi Charitable Trust, with 18 remote-controlled blast points and electric firecrackers for the first time (TOI). One caution: TOI's September report said the effigy would be put up "on Oct 20, a day before Dussehra", which doesn't match today's date. Check the trust's notice before you drive over. Last year's remote control failed in the rain and the effigy had to be lit by hand, the trust told TOI.

Delhi traffic and safety tonight

• East Delhi diversions, 5–8 PM: NH-24, Vikas Marg, Road No. 56, 57 and 57A. Expect slow traffic on Ghazipur Road, Patparganj Road and around Mayur Vihar, Trilokpuri and Shahdara (Delhi Traffic Police via NDTV).
• C.R. Park and Greater Kailash-II: Durga Puja restrictions from 4 PM to midnight continue today.
• Police: over 13,000 personnel across Delhi NCR, about 10,000 in Delhi alone. Gurugram has 2,200 personnel at 66 Ravan dahan sites, and each of the 12 major sites has a fire tender, an ambulance and a duty magistrate (PTI via NDTV).
• Help: Delhi Traffic Police helpline 1095 or 011-25844444; WhatsApp 8750871493.

My advice: take the Metro to the big grounds, get there before sunset, and stand upwind and well back from the barricade. A 221-ft effigy throws embers a long way. With children, the smaller neighbourhood grounds are a better bet than Red Fort or Dwarka.

What we don't know yet

• Exact burning times at Dwarka, Red Fort and Ramlila Maidan. None of them has published one, and Red Fort hadn't named its chief guest as of Time Out's 19 Oct report.
• Whether Panchkula's effigy burns today or tomorrow. I'll update this when the trust confirms.

Every festival date for the rest of the season, including Karwa Chauth on 29 Oct and Diwali on 8 Nov, is in our festival dates 2026 explainer. Markets are shut today: here's the Dussehra trading holiday.