Bengali New Year

Bengali New Year Quick Facts - US

AKA Name	Pahela Baishakh, Nababarsha
Hashtags	#BengaliNewYear, #PahelaBaishakh
Related Hashtags
2020 Date	April 14, 2020
2021 Date	April 14, 2021

2020 Holidays & Dates

Get Holiday reminders on Twitter:

Bengali New Year in 2020

Tuesday, Apr 14

Days to go:

Bengali New Year History

Bengali New Year (Pahela Baishakh) celebrates the first day of the Bengali calendar. The Mughal emperor Akbar the Great established the calendar around the agricultural cycle with the goal to make tax collection easier. Taxes from last year's harvest were collected on this day.

Bengali New Year Facts

Customarily, the Bengali New Year marks the day to start new ledgers for Bengali businesses.
The Mangal Shobhajatra festival is celebrated on this day. It was started by students and teachers of the Faculty of Fine Arts of Dhaka University in 1989 as a protest against the military rulers. The themes of evil, courage and strength, and peace are each represented by some of the masks or floats created for the festival. People come together regardless of race, beliefs or class.
"Shubho Nabobarsho" is "Happy new year" in Bengali.
An artist from Chhayanaut, an institution for Bengali culture, performs the song "Esho, he Boishakh, Esho Esho" ("Come, O Boishakh, Come, Come") under the banyan tree at Ramna Park. Large crowds gather for the occasion.

Bengali New Year Top Events and Things to Do

Wear a traditional Bengali sari, such as the Dhakai Jamdani or the Casual Tangail.
Prepare a traditional Bengali dish. The Dimer Dhokkar Dalna and Luchi is made with steamed eggs and potato cake in curry with luchi.
Watch a good movie. One of the highest rated Bengali movies on imdb.com is The Clay Bird (2002).