In Maharashtra, Ganesh Chaturthi is the most popular festival. Ganesh, the elephant faced deity is the son of Shiva and Parvati and the lord of all auspicious beginnings. He is the remover of all obstacles and is to be propitiated before any other deity. Colossal images of Ganesh are built and carried all round the city before they are finally submerged in water. The city of Mumbai remains in a feverish pitch of excitement throughout this period.

The Buddhists in Ladakh and in the north-east, celebrate the birth of the mystic master with supernatural powers, Guru Rimpoche Padmasambhava (Lotus Born) with frenzied mask dances - Chaams, and ritual display of painted scrolls (Tangkhas). The monasteries of Hemis in Ladakh, Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh and Rumtek in Sikkim, are particularly renowned for these performances. These ritual dances illustrate the incorporation of pre-Buddhist Shamanistic beliefs into the Buddhist faith.