Festival in Orissa

There are a number of Orissa festivals, which are celebrated with pomp and grandeur throughout the state. These festivals of Orissa are a very significant part of the socio-cultural life of the state.

One of the specialties of the festivals at Orissa is their variety. The people of the state take part in many festivals, which are organized on different occasions. The Orissa festivals can be broadly classified into different categories; these are commonly termed temple festivals, special festivals, tribal festivals and religious festivals.

A major temple festival in Orissa is the Ratha Yatra. This festival is organized to pay homage to the popular Hindu god Jagannath.

The state of Orissa houses a huge number of ethnic people. These people take part in their traditional festivals, which are called the tribal festivals. These festivals offer a lot of entertainment. Two popular tribal festivals in Orissa are Bali Yatra and Chaita Parva.

The special festivals refer to the festivals that are associated closely with the socio-cultural heritage of the state. These festivals are unique to Orissa. By participating in such celebrations one can get a feel of the cultural traditions of the state. Some special festivals of the place are Puri Beach Festival, Kalinga Festival and Konark Festival.

Apart from the above types of festivals, there is a fourth type, which is referred to as the religious festivals. These festivals are related to some religious occasion or the other. Sine Hinduism is the predominant religion of the state, the religious festivals of the region also pertain to the Hindu religion. Some religious festivals of Orissa are Maha Shiv Ratri, Durga Puja, Diwali and Dusherra.