New Year / Bestu Varas – 22 Oct

Gujarati New Year – Bestu Varas, is celebrated with devotion, joy, and a spirit of renewal on the day after Diwali. It marks the beginning of the Vikram Samvat calendar year and is one of the most cherished festivals among Gujaratis. Families wake up early, wear new clothes, and visit temples to offer prayers for prosperity, peace, and good fortune. The greeting for new year “Saal Mubarak”  / “Nutan Varshabhinandan” is exchanged warmly among relatives, friends, and neighbors, symbolising fresh beginnings and unity.

Temples also celebrate Annakut or Govardhan Puja, offering a grand variety of food to the deities, symbolising abundance and gratitude. Homes are decorated with rangoli and lamps, carrying forward the Diwali glow. Bestu Varas thus blends spirituality, enterprise, and community, reminding Gujaratis that every new year is both a material and moral renewal.

General running order:

• Meet & Greet 
• 10:30 – 1st Aarti 
• 12:00 – 2nd Aarti 
• Thereafter Annakut Prashad