Kolkata Durga Puja FAQ
Dates, pandals, crowds, getting around and where to eat - the questions people ask most about Durga Puja in Kolkata.
When is Durga Puja 2026 in Kolkata?
Mahalaya: Oct 10, 2026. Shashthi: Oct 16, 2026. Saptami: Oct 17 & 18, 2026 (two days this year). Ashtami: Oct 19, 2026. Navami: Oct 20, 2026. Dashami: Oct 21, 2026.
Which Durga Puja pandals should I visit in Kolkata?
Kolkata has hundreds of Durga Puja pandals, so choosing where to start can be overwhelming. Pujor Shohor brings together pandals from different parts of the city so you can explore them by neighbourhood, location and route.
How can I plan a Durga Puja pandal-hopping route in Kolkata?
Choose the pandals you want to visit on our Map, and you can plan your route based on their locations. You can also check nearby metro and bus routes to make getting around Kolkata easier.
How can I find the nearest metro or bus route to a Durga Puja pandal?
You can use Pujor Shohor to find transport information for the pandals you’re planning to visit, including nearby metro stations and available routes. This makes it easier to plan your pandal-hopping journey before you head out.
Where can I find food near me while pandal hopping?
Hungry while exploring the pandals? Use our nearby eateries feature to find restaurants and other places to eat based on your current location. It’s useful when you want to grab something without going too far from your pandal-hopping route.
How many days does Durga Puja last?
Five days of puja, from Shashti to Dashami. In practice Kolkata treats it as longer: pandal hopping starts by Chaturthi or Panchami, and the city counts from Mahalaya on 10 Oct 2026, which opens Devipaksha a week earlier.
When is Mahalaya 2026?
Mahalaya 2026 falls on 10 Oct 2026. It begins Devipaksha, not the puja itself - tarpan at the Ganga ghats at dawn, Mahishasuramardini on the radio at four in the morning, and chokkhu daan at Kumartuli. The pandals are still being built.
What are the top 10 Durga Puja pandals in Kolkata?
The ones that draw the longest queues are Sreebhumi Sporting, Bagbazar Sarbojanin, Kumartuli Park, Mohammad Ali Park and Santosh Mitra Square in the north, and Suruchi Sangha, Chetla Agrani, Badamtala Ashar Sangha, 66 Pally and Mudiali in the south. Which ten are actually best changes every year with the themes, so this site ranks them by reader votes instead of fixing a list.
Which pandals are a must visit if I only have one night?
Pick one direction; nobody does the whole city in a night. In the north, Bagbazar, Kumartuli Park and Ahiritola are close enough to walk between. In the south, Suruchi Sangha, Chetla Agrani and Mudiali sit near each other. Sreebhumi is a trip of its own and has the longest queue in the city.
How many Durga Puja pandals are there in Kolkata?
More than two thousand in the city proper, and close to three thousand permitted by Kolkata Police across the wider area. This site lists the ones whose locations have been checked, which is a fraction of that. If your para is missing, send it in - no account needed.
When is the best time to go pandal hopping?
Chaturthi and Panchami nights. Almost everything is finished by then and the crowds are still bearable. Saptami to Navami is the most spectacular, but north Kolkata is close to impassable after nine at night. If you want the pandals nearly empty, go between six and nine in the morning.
North Kolkata or south Kolkata - which should I do?
North Kolkata is older, denser and more traditional: the pandals are walking distance apart down narrow lanes, and the crowds are heavier. South Kolkata is spread out, with the bigger and more modern theme work, and you will need transport between them. If it is your first time, start in the north.
Do you have to pay to enter a Durga Puja pandal?
No. Kolkata’s sarbojanin pujas are open to everyone and free to enter. Some bonedi bari household pujas keep set visiting hours, but they do not charge either.
Is there a VIP pass for Kolkata Durga Puja?
Not one that is sold. A few of the big clubs run a separate line for guests of the committee, but it is not available to buy. Anything online offering to sell you a Durga Puja VIP pass is a scam. Entry is free everywhere.
What is the best way to get around during Durga Puja?
Take the metro to one para and walk it. Roads around the big pandals are closed to traffic during Puja, so a car or a cab is often slower than walking and far harder to park. The metro runs through the night on the main puja days.
Where can I eat near the pandals?
Every pandal page on this site lists the restaurants, sweet shops and street food within walking distance, taken from OpenStreetMap. During Puja the roadside stalls are the real answer, and those appear on no map at all.
What is sandhi puja, and when does it happen?
A forty-eight minute ritual at the joint of Ashtami and Navami - the last twenty-four minutes of one and the first twenty-four of the next. The exact time is set by the panjika and moves every year. A hundred and eight lamps are lit.
Is Kolkata Durga Puja a UNESCO heritage festival?
Yes. In December 2021 UNESCO inscribed "Durga Puja in Kolkata" on its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity - the first festival in India to be listed.
Where do the photographs on this site come from?
Some are from Wikimedia Commons, shown with the photographer’s credit and licence. The rest were sent in by readers who stood there and took them. You can add your own from any pandal’s page.