The holy festival of Holika Dahan is being celebrated in most places this year on March 2, 2026. This festival is also known as Chhoti Holi. On this day, people from the neighbourhood gather wood and then, at the auspicious time, set fire to these woods, thus burning Holika.
After this, everyone circumambulates the Holika fire. This festival reminds us that no matter how powerful unrighteousness may be, in the end, righteousness and truth always prevail. Let us tell you what the timing of Holika Dahan will be in your city this year.
City-wise Holika Dahan Muhurat 2026
- Delhi - 6:39 pm to 9 pm
- Noida - 6:39 pm to 9 pm
- Mathura - 6:36 pm to 9 pm
- Bhopal - 6:24 pm to 8:51 pm
- Lucknow - 6:30 pm to 8:51 pm
- Patna - 5:52 pm to 8:20 pm
- Mumbai - 6:44 pm to 9:11 pm
- Chandigarh - 6:23 pm to 8:51 pm
- Shimla - 6:21 pm to 8:50 pm
- Jaipur - 6:29 pm to 8:57 pm
- Varanasi - 6:39 pm to 9 pm
- Raipur - 6:08 pm to 8:35 pm
- Bengaluru - 6:29 pm to 8:54 pm
- Chennai - 6:18 pm to 8:43 pm
- Hyderabad - 6:23 pm to 8:49 pm
- Itanagar - 5:17 pm to 7:45 pm
- Kolkata - 5:41 pm to 8:08 pm
- Bhubaneswar - 5:52 pm to 8:19 pm
- Nagpur - 6:19 pm to 8:45 pm
- Ahmedabad - 6:43 pm to 9:11 pm
- Ranchi - 5:53 pm to 8:20 pm
Why is Holika Dahan celebrated?
Holika was Hiranyakashyap's sister and had the boon of not getting burnt in fire, whereas Hiranyakashyap's son, Prahlad, was an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu, which Hiranyakashyap did not like at all. So one day Hiranyakashyap, upset with his son's devotion to Vishnu, made him sit in the fire along with Holika, but by the grace of Lord Vishnu, devotee Prahlad was saved, and Holika got burnt in the fire. Since then, this festival of Holika Dahan has been celebrated. On this day, during Holika Dahan, a stick buried in the soil as a symbol of devotee Prahlad is taken out from the burning fire, while the wood placed around the stick is allowed to burn.
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