Sindoor Jatra celebrated in Madhyapur Thimi

By A Staff Reporter,Kathmandu, Apr. 16: Residents of Madhyapur Thimi joyously celebrated Sindoor Jatra on Wednesday. The festival is observed annually by the Newar community in Madhyapur Thimi on Baisakh 2.

The famous Sindoor Jatra, also known as Suthasiyu (Morning Jatra), was celebrated with great enthusiasm in Madhyapur Thimi, Bhaktapur, from early morning. Residents painted the idols of neighborhood deities with vermilion and carried them around the city.

As per tradition, the festival is marked by people smearing vermilion powder (sindoor) on one another, accompanied by singing and dancing to the tunes of traditional Newari music.

Sindoor Jatra is one of the biggest festivals for the people of Madhyapur Thimi and also marks the arrival of spring.

The vibrant celebration involves carrying idols of various deities through the city while participants smear vermilion powder on each other.

There is a tradition of circumambulating the city with 32 palanquins carrying idols of different deities. Of these, 23 palanquins are brought from Thimi and nine from Nagadesh, Bode, and Tigani.

However, in recent years, the Jatra has been held with 26 palanquins. In the procession that began in the morning, 26 idols of deities were brought to the premises of the Balkumari Temple, where they performed a circumambulation.

The red hue of vermilion and the sound of musical instruments made the Madhyapur Thimi area appear vibrant and festive. From local youth to the elderly, everyone participated in the celebration dressed in traditional attire.

In the ancient municipality of Madhyapur, the Newar community of Thimi has its own spectacular way of celebrating the festival.

Today, 26 palanquins were carried by men, while the music of dhime (a traditional Newari drum) and other instruments filled the air.

The processions converged in front of the town’s Balkumari Temple for the final ceremony.