Durga Puja (Maha Ashtami)

Durga Puja (Maha Ashtami) falls on 17/10/2026 this year, marking the peak days of Bengal's largest festival, honouring Goddess Durga's victory over the buffalo demon Mahishasura — an occasion that shuts down much of Kolkata for a week.

Across India it's observed through elaborately themed pandals rivalling art installations, the sindoor khela ritual where married women smear each other with vermilion on the final day, and processions carrying idols for immersion. Kolkata's pandal-hopping is a cultural institution in itself, with north and south Kolkata neighbourhoods competing for the most inventive themes each year.

Because many Indian festivals follow the lunar or regional calendars rather than a fixed Gregorian date, the exact day can shift by a day either way — this page reflects the widely reported date for 2026, worth a quick local check closer to the time, especially for moon-sighting-dependent observances like the Eids.

Knowing exactly how many days remain helps with the practical side too: booking leave, planning travel before fares climb, or simply setting expectations with family on when to expect a visit home. That's the gap this countdown fills — one clear, large number, ticking down in real time, so there's no need to keep recalculating by hand or hunting for the date across half a dozen tabs.