The Behdienkhlam Festival is a vibrant, multi‑day celebration in Meghalaya, which is observed by the Pnar (Jaintia) community. This annual festival is held in July across the northeastern state, just after the sowing season. The name of the festival literally translates from Pnar as ‘drive away’ (beh‑dien) disease or plague (khlam), originally intended to ward off cholera and other epidemics. As per religious beliefs, this festival is also an invocation to God, seeking his blessings for a bumper harvest. Behdienkhlam Festival 2025 falls on Friday, July 11 and will continue till Monday, July 14. Meghalaya Government Launches Strawberry Festival 2025 Edition.

This harvest festival is celebrated in order to please the Gods for a bountiful plentiful. The festival held at Jowai is one of the most well-known and recreational festival in Meghalaya. In this article, let’s know more about Behdienkhlam Festival 2025 dates and the significance of the annual event.

Behdienkhlam Festival 2025 Dates

Behdienkhlam Festival 2025 falls on Friday to Monday, July 11 and will continue till July 14, 2025.

Behdienkhlam Festival Rituals

  • During the celebrations of Behdienkhlam festival of North East India, the ceremony and ritual is carried out for three days and on the last day.

  • In the afternoon, people gather in a place called Aitnar and both young and old dance to the tunes of the pipes and drums.

  • The dancers are highly emotional when tall-decorated structures called rots and a wooden post-called khnongs would be brought into the pool.

  • The climax of this famous festival is when people dressed up in their best attire would converge to a place called Mynthong to witness a game played similar to football, called dad-lawakor. The game is played with a wooden ball between the Northerners and the Southerners.

  • The side wins the match by putting the ball on the other side would signify that in the following year there would be a bumper harvest in that particular region.

Behdienkhlam Festival Significance

Behdienkhlam Festival is a joyous celebration of community solidarity and cultural identity, set during Meghalaya’s early monsoon rains. The cheerful crowds, traditional dances to the beat of pipes and drums, and sale of handicrafts, cane goods, bamboo art, and local food in the market, all combine into a rich and grand celebration of the festival in the northeastern state.

A series of religious rites is being performed by the Daloi (chief). During the Behdienkhlam Cultural Festival Tour, young men make a symbolic gesture of driving away of the evil spirit, plague and disease by beating of the roof of every house with bamboo poles.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 11, 2025 06:00 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).