Odia Calendar Chaitra (MARCH-APRIL) 2025

Chaitra is a Hindu month occurring between March and April. In Odisha, this month is considered auspicious. Rama Navami is a Hindu festival celebrating the birth of Lord Rama on the ninth day of the bright half (or Shukla Paksha) of the month of Chaitra. After Sandhya Dhupa is performed in the Jagannath temple; decorated idols of Lord Rama and Laxman are taken out in a decorated palanquin, to Jagannath Ballava Matha-an auspicious garden, thereafter.

From Rama Navami, the Sahi Jatra or Sahi Yatra starts in Puri. It is said that, for these Sahi Jatra, seven sahis generally do street performances by selected people acting various puranic characters from stories in Ramayana-from the birth of Lord Rama to the killing of demon king Ravana.

The full moon day in the month of Chaitra is called Chaitra Purnima. The day is observed as a tribal festival called Chaitra Parva in Odisha. It is very auspicious for the fishing community, and they offer special pujas on this day to get a good catch and safe fishing in the seas. On Chaitra Purnima, a traditional dance form called Chaiti Ghoda Nacha is performed.

Chaiti Ghoda Nacha is a folk dance traditional to Odisha-conceived and practiced among the Kaibarta or Keuta community only. Here Chaiti denotes the month of Chaitra, Ghoda means horse, and Nacha means to dance. The festival is prolonged for eight days, in reverence to Goddess Vasulei, the caste deity, who is depicted with the head and features of a horse. In Odisha, the rituals of Mangala Puja begin right on Chaitra Purnima and continue for a month.