Vijayadashami: from Indrakeeladri to Alai Balai, how the Telugu states celebrate Dasara

Vijayadashami 2026: what the day marks

Vijayadashami 2026 falls on Tuesday, October 20, the tenth and last day of Dasara. The name combines two words: vijaya, meaning victory, and dashami, the tenth day. In the Telugu calendar the day is Ashwayuja Shuddha Dashami.

In eastern and southern India, the day celebrates Goddess Durga’s victory over the demon Mahishasura and ends nine nights of worship. In much of northern, central and western India it marks Rama’s defeat of Ravana. Both traditions carry the same message: good prevails over evil.

A third story comes from the Mahabharata. Before their year in disguise, the Pandavas are said to have hidden their celestial weapons in a Shami tree, and Arjuna later came back for them. In Telugu the Shami tree is called Jammi, and it is still central to Dasara customs in Telangana.

Andhra Pradesh: Dasara on Indrakeeladri

In Andhra Pradesh, Dasara centres on Indrakeeladri, the hill in Vijayawada where the Kanaka Durga temple looks down on the Krishna river. The complex, run by Sri Durga Malleswara Swamy Varla Devasthanam, also has a shrine to Malleswara Swamy, a form of Shiva.

Legend explains the hill’s name. A devotee named Keela did penance to Durga, and she turned him into a mountain with the Krishna flowing at its feet. Indra and the gods then came there to worship her.

The core of the festival is the alankaram, the daily adornment of the goddess as a different form of Durga. This year’s festival opened on October 11 with Sri Bala Tripura Sundari Devi. The following days brought Gayatri, Annapurna, Maha Chandi, Lalitha Tripura Sundari, Saraswati, Mahalakshmi and Durga Devi. On Mahanavami, October 19, she appeared as Mahishasura Mardini, seated on a lion and slaying the demon.

The sixth day, Moola Nakshatram, is traditionally regarded as the goddess’s birth star. On that day she is adorned as Saraswati with a veena on her lap, and many parents bring their children to the hill for their first lessons in letters. By custom, the state government also presents silk robes to the goddess on this day.

About 10 lakh devotees visited in the first eight days, and more than 16 lakh laddus were sold. This year the devasthanam scrapped its Rs 100, Rs 300 and Rs 500 darshan tickets to give priority to ordinary devotees. No tickets at all were to be sold on Moola Nakshatram or Vijayadashami.

On Vijayadashami the goddess is traditionally adorned as Sri Raja Rajeswari Devi, the form listed for this year’s final day. In 2023, for example, this alankaram began in the afternoon, once the Dashami tithi set in.

The best-known event comes in the evening: the Teppotsavam, or float festival. The processional deities of Malleswara Swamy and Kanaka Durga are placed on the Hamsa Vahanam, an illuminated swan-shaped float, and taken out on the Krishna at Durga Ghat. This year it is scheduled for 6 pm, and officials held a trial run at the ghat on October 18.

Whether the float sails depends on the river. In 2022 and again in 2024, heavy inflows near the Prakasam Barrage forced the boat ride to be cancelled. In 2022 a puja was performed at Durga Ghat instead, and in 2024 temple authorities planned a smaller Jalaviharam.

Telangana: Bathukamma’s farewell, Jammi leaves and Alai Balai

In Telangana, Dasara comes just after Bathukamma, the nine-day flower festival in honour of Goddess Gauri. Women stack tangedu, gunugu, marigold and chrysanthemum into tall, dome-shaped arrangements and place a small turmeric figure of Gauramma on top. In the evening they sing and dance in circles around them, then immerse the flowers in a lake or pond.

This year Bathukamma began on October 10 and ended on Durgashtami, October 18, with Saddula Bathukamma. That evening, about 700 Bathukammas filled Tank Bund on Hussain Sagar in Hyderabad, and roughly 700 artists performed 30 traditional art forms; the evening also featured a laser show and fireworks.

On Dasara, families perform Shami puja, the worship of the Jammi (Shami) tree, which is Telangana’s state tree. They then exchange its leaves with relatives and friends as a symbol of gold, wish one another good luck, and seek the blessings of elders.

Many people also watch for the Palapitta, the Indian roller and Telangana’s state bird. Seeing it at Dasara is believed to bring good fortune. Ahead of Dasara the forest department has been acting against poaching and the display of caged birds, so the good luck is in spotting one in the wild.

Alai Balai, the get-together at which people exchange Jammi leaves and greetings, closes the festivities. In Hyderabad it has also grown into a large public gathering, usually held soon after Dasara; recent editions have taken place at the Exhibition Grounds in Nampally. Navaratri also ends with special prayers at temples such as the Kanakadurga temple in Basheerbagh and the Bhadrakali temple in Warangal. Durga idols are usually carried to Hussain Sagar and other lakes for immersion in processions with kolatam, Teenmaar and Gussadi performances.

Tools, books and new beginnings

In both states, the last days of Navaratri are also a time to give thanks for work. For Ayudha Puja, observed around Mahanavami and Vijayadashami, families clean tools, machines and vehicles, mark them with turmeric and sandalwood paste, and worship them. Books and musical instruments are honoured in the same way.

Vijayadashami is considered an auspicious day to start something new, including a child’s education. In Aksharabhyasam, a child’s first ceremony of letters dedicated to Saraswati, the child’s hand is guided to trace letters on rice grains. The Gnana Saraswati temple at Basara in Telangana is a favourite place for the ritual, and at Indrakeeladri many families choose Moola Nakshatram.

A festive wish

At Indrakeeladri and on Tank Bund alike, Dasara in the Telugu states is a festival of devotion, family and fresh starts. From all of us at Telugu Scope, a very happy Vijayadashami.

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