Festival · Darjeeling
Tihar, the festival of lights
Tihar is the five-day festival of lights of the Nepali-speaking hills, held around Diwali. Each day honours someone: crows, dogs, cows, the goddess Lakshmi, and finally brothers on Bhai Tika. Evenings bring lamps, marigold garlands and groups singing Deusi and Bhailo from house to house.
Tihar arrives about two to three weeks after Dashain, in October or November. The first day honours crows (Kag Tihar), the second dogs (Kukur Tihar), when street and house dogs alike are given marigold garlands, a tika and a good meal. The third morning is for cows, and that evening for Lakshmi, goddess of wealth, when houses are lit with lamps and candles and doorways are painted with a path of colour to lead her in.
On the evenings of Tihar, groups of young people and neighbours go from house to house singing Bhailo (girls) and Deusi (boys), call-and-response songs that ask for blessings and gifts; the household answers with money, sel roti and fruit, and the groups often collect for a local cause. The last day, Bhai Tika, is when sisters place a seven-coloured tika on their brothers and give them garlands of makhamali flowers.
Sel roti, a ring-shaped fried rice bread, is made in quantity in every home. For visitors, Tihar is one of the warmest times to be in a homestay. The weather is usually clear and cold. Dates follow the lunar calendar, so check current status before you travel. Bakeries and street stalls sell it too, and families send plates of it to neighbours. Outside the towns, villages light rows of small oil lamps and candles along paths and windows, which is a lovely sight from a homestay balcony on Lakshmi Puja night.
Tips
- Stay in a village homestay for Tihar if you can: you will see the lamps, the songs and the sel roti being made.
- If a Deusi or Bhailo group sings at your homestay, a small cash gift is the custom.
- Kukur Tihar is a good day for photographs of garlanded dogs, but ask owners before you approach.
Most hill festivals follow lunar calendars, so dates move each year. Check current status before you travel.
Questions people ask
Good to know
Is Tihar the same as Diwali?
They fall at the same time and share the Lakshmi Puja night of lamps, but Tihar is the Nepali form of the festival and lasts five days. It adds days for crows, dogs and cows, the Deusi and Bhailo singing, and Bhai Tika, when sisters bless their brothers with a seven-coloured tika.
What is Kukur Tihar?
Kukur Tihar is the second day of Tihar, when dogs are honoured. Families put a marigold garland and a red tika on their dogs and feed them well, and many people do the same for street dogs. It honours the dog as a loyal companion and, in Hindu belief, a messenger of Yama.
What are Deusi and Bhailo?
They are the house-to-house songs of Tihar. Girls sing Bhailo, mostly on the Lakshmi Puja evening, and boys sing Deusi on the following nights. The singers bless the household in verse and the household replies with money and food, often sel roti. Groups often raise funds for a local club or cause.
When is Tihar celebrated in Darjeeling?
In October or November, over five days around Diwali, set by the lunar calendar. Lakshmi Puja, the night of lamps, is the brightest evening, and Bhai Tika the most family-centred day. Hotels in Darjeeling are busy, so book ahead and check current status before you travel.