Mysuru Dasara: Karnataka's royal festival

Mysuru Dasara is Karnataka's Nadahabba, its state festival: ten days of worship, music and pageantry in the old royal city of Mysuru (Mysore), ending with an elephant carrying the goddess through the streets. It is the best known Dasara in south India and draws visitors from across the country.

Mysuru Dasara 2026 dates

The festival opens on Sunday 11 October 2026, the first day of Navratri, with a puja to the goddess Chamundeshwari at her temple on Chamundi Hill. It runs through the nine nights and ends with the Jamboo Savari on Vijayadashami. Mysuru follows its own panchanga, and 2026 reports differ on whether the procession falls on 20 or 21 October, so check the official schedule from the Mysuru district administration before you book travel.

A royal festival

The Wadiyar kings of Mysore began celebrating Dasara as a royal festival in the early 17th century, taking up the great Mahanavami celebrations of the Vijayanagara empire before them. The goddess at its heart is Chamundeshwari, the form of Durga who killed the buffalo demon Mahishasura; the city's name is often traced to him. Today the festival is organised by the Karnataka government, while the Wadiyar family still holds a private durbar (royal court) in the palace on the festival days.

What happens during the ten days

• Palace illumination. Every evening, Mysuru Palace and the main streets around it are lit with tens of thousands of bulbs. The palace lights are the single most photographed sight of the festival.
• Cultural programmes. Classical music and dance on stages in the palace grounds and across the city, with folk performances, a film festival, Yuva Dasara concerts and traditional wrestling (kusti).
• The Dasara exhibition. A large fair of stalls, rides and food runs for weeks at the exhibition grounds near the palace.
• Elephant preparation. The procession elephants arrive from forest camps weeks before (the Gaja Payana) and are trained in the city to get used to the crowds and the noise. Watching their morning walks is a quieter way to see them.
• Ayudha Puja. On Navami, the royal weapons, vehicles and the palace elephants are worshipped, as tools and vehicles are across Karnataka (see Ayudha Puja).

Also readNavratri and Dussehra across India

The Jamboo Savari

On Vijayadashami afternoon, after a ceremonial worship at the palace, an idol of Chamundeshwari is placed in the golden howdah on the back of the lead elephant. The procession sets out from the palace and winds about five kilometres through the city to Bannimantap, with decorated elephants, horses, tableaux (stabdha chitras) from every district, police bands, and folk dancers.

In the evening, the torchlight parade (Panjina Kavayathu) at the Bannimantap grounds closes the festival with drills, stunts on horseback and fireworks.

Practical tips

• Book early. Hotels in Mysuru fill quickly for the last three days.
• Passes. The route is free to watch from the roadside, but seats inside the palace and at Bannimantap need passes, sold by the district administration closer to the festival.
• Arrive early. Crowds on the procession route build from late morning; find a spot well before the procession leaves.
• Evenings for the lights. Plan at least one evening in front of the palace when the lights come on.

Mysuru Dasara and Durga Puja

The two festivals honour the same victory, Durga over Mahishasura, in very different styles: a royal procession in Mysuru, and neighbourhood pandals in Kolkata. In Karnataka homes the season is also Gombe Habba, the doll display described in the Golu guide. For the whole picture, see Navratri across India and Dussehra.