Uttarayani Mela, Bageshwar
fair
When it happens
January
Makar Sankranti — a solar date, so effectively fixed at 14 January, occasionally 15. The fair opens a day or two earlier and runs about a week.
Significance
Founded under the Chand dynasty as a trade fair, and historically the point where Bhotiya traders from the high valleys met traders from the plains.
Why it's celebrated
Makar Sankranti is the day the sun crosses into Capricorn and begins moving north, when bathing at a confluence is held to be especially auspicious.
How it's celebrated
Pilgrims bathe at the Saryu–Gomti confluence and worship at Bagnath. The fairground fills with hill traders selling iron and copper vessels, baskets, bamboo work, mats, blankets, herbs and spices — working goods rather than souvenirs.
Key rituals
Bathing at the Saryu–Gomti confluence, worship at the Bagnath temple, and a week of hill trading.
Beliefs & spiritual meaning
Bathing at a river confluence on the day the sun turns north is held to be especially purifying.
History & origins
A Chand-era trade fair at a sacred confluence. It is also a documented site of the freedom movement: the coolie-begar registers were torn up on this fairground on Makar Sankranti in 1921.
Frequently asked
When is the Uttarayani Mela held?+
At Makar Sankranti, which is a solar date and so effectively fixed at 14 January, occasionally the 15th. The fair opens a day or two before and runs about a week at Bageshwar.
Is it a religious fair or a trade fair?+
Both, and the trade came first. Pilgrims bathe at the Saryu–Gomti confluence and worship at Bagnath, while the fairground fills with hill traders selling vessels, baskets, blankets, herbs and spices. It was founded under the Chand dynasty as the meeting point between the high valleys and the plains.
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