Bastar Dussehra 2026: Dates, Schedule, Rituals and Visitor Guide

We are a neighbourhood supermarket in Dharampura, Jagdalpur, and for us Bastar Dussehra is not an event we read about. It is the season the whole city moves to. The roads around the temple fill up, villages arrive with their deities, and the great wooden rath rolls past shops that have watched it for generations. This guide puts everything in one place: the full 2026 schedule, what each ritual means, and practical tips if you are coming to see it.

When is Bastar Dussehra 2026?

Bastar Dussehra 2026 began on 12 August 2026 with Paat Jatra and ends on 27 October 2026 with the farewell of Maa Mavli's doli. The biggest days are 21 October (Bhitar Raini), 22 October (Bahar Raini) and 23 October (Muria Darbar). These dates come from the schedule released by the Bastar Dussehra Committee, as reported by Patrika and Amar Ujala.

Full Bastar Dussehra 2026 schedule

A note on the dates. Some national tourism pages list Bhitar Raini on 20 October 2026. The Bastar Dussehra Committee's own schedule puts it on 21 October, with Bahar Raini on 22 October. Rituals follow the Hindu calendar and local custom, and timings on the day can shift, so check locally before you plan around a specific hour.

What is Bastar Dussehra?

Bastar Dussehra is a festival of about 75 days held in Jagdalpur, the main city of the Bastar region in southern Chhattisgarh. It is dedicated to Maa Danteshwari, the presiding goddess of Bastar, along with hundreds of village deities who are carried into the city from across the region. Its best-known sight is a huge wooden rath, built by hand every year and pulled through the old city by villagers.

It shares a name and a few dates with Dussehra elsewhere in India, but almost nothing else. It is a living tradition of Bastar's tribal communities and its old royal family, with roles passed down through particular villages and families for centuries.

Why is Bastar Dussehra 75 days long?

Because it begins with the rath, not with the battle. The festival opens on Hareli Amavasya in the month of Shravan with Paat Jatra, when the first wood for the chariot is worshipped. Building the rath, preparing each ritual, and gathering the deities from the villages takes weeks. The season then runs through Navratri and closes only after the deities have been given their farewell. "75 days" is the traditional count. In 2026, the first and last rituals fall on 12 August and 27 October.

Is Ravana burnt in Bastar Dussehra?

No. There is no Ravana dahan in Bastar Dussehra. The festival is about the worship of Maa Danteshwari and the local deities, not the Ramayana story of Lord Ram defeating Ravana. Some local tellings add that Bastar, part of the ancient Dandakaranya forest, was once counted as Ravana's realm, which is why his effigy is not burnt here. Treat that as folklore. The simple answer is that this Dussehra was never about Ravana.

History: who started Bastar Dussehra?

By the most common account, Bastar Dussehra began in the early 15th century under Maharaja Purushottam Dev of the Kakatiya dynasty. Tradition says he went on a pilgrimage to Jagannath Puri, where the priests honoured him with the title of "Rathpati", lord of the chariot. He brought the rath tradition home to Bastar. Sources give different years for its start, from around 1408 to 1423, so it is fair to say the festival is about 600 years old.

The festival later moved with the capital. When Raja Dalpat Deo shifted the seat of Bastar to Jagdalpur in the 1700s, Dussehra came with it, and it has centred on the Danteshwari temple in Jagdalpur ever since. (We told that story in the story of Dalpat Sagar, Jagdalpur's royal lake.) The Muria Darbar was added much later: it traces back to an assembly of village headmen first held in 1876, according to Drishti IAS, and it became part of the festival in the years after.

The rituals of Bastar Dussehra, explained

Paat Jatra: the festival begins

On Hareli Amavasya, a log known as the Thurlu Khotla is worshipped at the Danteshwari temple, and the tools that will shape the rath are blessed. In 2026 the log came by bullock cart from Billori village, about 7 km away. It is the quiet first step of a very long celebration.

Deri Gadhai: the work begins in earnest

Wooden posts are ritually set into the ground at Sirhasar Bhawan, the community hall at the centre of the festival. After this, the building of the rath moves into full swing.

Kachan Gadi: the goddess gives permission

Nothing proceeds without Kachan Devi's blessing. On Ashwin Amavasya, a young girl, by most accounts from the Panka community, is believed to carry the goddess. She lies on a swing made of thorns and gives the royal family permission to hold the festival. It is one of Bastar Dussehra's most striking rituals, and it takes place on 10 October in 2026.

Kalash Sthapana and Jogi Bithai

Navratri begins with Kalash Sthapana. The next day, at Jogi Bithai, a man from the Halba community, by tradition, sits in a pit at Sirhasar Bhawan and meditates for nine days, praying for the festival to pass without obstacles. His vow ends at Jogi Uthai, on 20 October in 2026.

Phool Rath parikrama

Through Navratri, the flower-decked rath carrying Maa Danteshwari's chhatra (canopy) is pulled around its route each day, usually in the evening. In 2026 that is from 13 to 18 October. If you cannot make the main days, these rounds are a gentler way to see the rath and the crowds.

Nisha Jatra: the midnight ritual

On Maha Ashtami night, Nisha Jatra is performed at midnight, with traditional offerings including animal sacrifice. It is among the oldest rites of the festival. Visitors should know that it may not suit everyone, and that it is a sacred ritual, not a show.

Mavli Parghav: welcoming Maa Mavli

Maa Mavli's doli arrives from Dantewada and is welcomed with a grand reception. Drums, devotees and deities from the villages come together for one of the most joyful moments of the season.

Bhitar Raini and Bahar Raini: the big rath

These are the days most visitors come for. On Bhitar Raini (21 October 2026), the larger rath is pulled around the inner route. At night, in one of the festival's best-loved traditions, villagers "steal" the rath and take it to Kumhrakot, a forest area on the edge of the city. The story behind it is that the villagers wanted the king to share the new harvest meal, nayakhani, with them. On Bahar Raini (22 October 2026), the royal family goes to Kumhrakot, shares the meal, and the rath is brought back in a grand procession.

Muria Darbar: the people's assembly

On 23 October, after Kachan Jatra in the morning, village headmen and community leaders from across Bastar gather at the Muria Darbar to raise local issues with the administration. For more than a century it has been a rare open forum between the people of Bastar and those who govern them. Chief Ministers have attended for years, and in 2026 President Droupadi Murmu has accepted the invitation to attend, as reported on 29 September 2026.

Kutumb Jatra and the farewell

On 24 October, the village deities are honoured and given their farewell, and they begin their journeys home. The festival formally closes on 27 October 2026, when Maa Mavli's doli departs.

The rath: how it is built and who pulls it

The rath is built by hand every year, by about 150 artisans from Beda Umargaon and Jhar Umargaon villages, using sal and tinsa wood and traditional methods. By most accounts there are two chariots: a four-wheeled rath for the Phool Rath rounds and a larger eight-wheeled rath for Bhitar and Bahar Raini. Reported heights vary from source to source, with 35 to 40 feet often quoted.

Pulling the rath is an honour held by specific communities. Villagers from Kachorapati and Agarwara pull the smaller rath, and Maria villagers from Kilepal pull the larger one, according to Sahapedia. The wood itself has become a live question: in 2024, 240 trees were cut for the chariot, reported The Hitavada, and on 3 October 2026, villagers in the Darbha valley protested the felling of sal trees, asking that a rath be reused for a few years.

How many deities take part?

Hundreds. Deities are carried in from villages and parganas across Bastar, and published estimates range from about 450 to well over a thousand. No single figure is official, but anyone who has stood near the temple on the main days will tell you it feels like all of Bastar has come to town.

Best days and places to watch Bastar Dussehra

• For the big rath: Bhitar Raini on 21 October and Bahar Raini on 22 October 2026.
• For a calmer look: the Phool Rath rounds from 13 to 18 October, usually in the evening.
• For the spectacle of faith: Mavli Parghav on 20 October, when the deities and devotees fill the streets.
• Where to stand: the area around the Maa Danteshwari temple and Sirhasar Bhawan, and along the rath's route through the old city near Gol Bazaar. Kumhrakot is the focus on Bahar Raini.

Tips: arrive early, as the best spots fill fast. Carry water and a little cash as well as UPI. Wear comfortable shoes, keep children close in the crowds, and ask before photographing anyone taking part in a ritual. Above all, remember that every one of these rituals is worship first.

How to reach Jagdalpur for Bastar Dussehra

• By air: Jagdalpur has its own airport, Maa Danteshwari Airport (JGB), with flights that have connected it to Raipur and Hyderabad. Check current schedules before you book. Raipur's airport is about 300 km away.
• By road: Raipur to Jagdalpur is roughly 6 to 7 hours by road on NH-30. Buses also run to Jagdalpur from Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada.
• By train: Jagdalpur is on the Kirandul line from Visakhapatnam, a famously scenic ride through the Eastern Ghats, and has trains from Durg and other cities. See the Bastar district's travel page for current trains.

Hotels fill up quickly around the main days, so book early. While you are here, Bastar has plenty more to see; our guide to the 10 best places to visit in Jagdalpur and Bastar covers Chitrakote Falls, Tirathgarh and more.

Is Bastar Dussehra a UNESCO World Heritage?

Not yet. In September 2026, the Bastar Dussehra committee resolved to seek a place for the festival on UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage, reported Amar Ujala. Any listing would be years away, but the push has begun.

How is Bastar Dussehra different from Mysore and Kullu Dussehra?

Mysore Dasara is a royal celebration of about ten days that honours the goddess Chamundeshwari, famous for its elephant procession. Kullu Dussehra in Himachal Pradesh begins on Vijayadashami itself and gathers the valley's deities around Lord Raghunath for a week. Bastar Dussehra stands apart: it lasts about 75 days, it centres on Maa Danteshwari and Bastar's tribal deities, its heart is a hand-built wooden rath, and there is no Ravana at all.

बस्तर दशहरा 2026: मुख्य तिथियाँ

Coming for Dussehra? Stock up in Dharampura

Little Town Superstore is on Dalpat Sagar to Navodaya Vidyalaya Road, near P.G. College in Dharampura, Jagdalpur. Visitors pick up water, fruit and snacks for long days in the crowds, and the Whispering Leaves café inside is a good place to sit with a chai or cold coffee between rituals. If you live here and are planning the festive shopping, our calm, three-wave Bastar Dussehra shopping plan spreads it across the season.

Sources

• 2026 schedule: Bastar Dussehra Committee, as published by Patrika, Amar Ujala and Saahas Samachar.
• Rituals and the rath: Sahapedia, Bastar district administration, The Hitavada.
• History: Incredible India, Drishti IAS.
• 2026 news: Lalluram (President's visit), Amar Ujala (UNESCO), ETV Bharat (tree protest).