Bisket Jatra: Bhaktapur's Chariot Festival

Bisket Jatra is one of Nepal's most dramatic and physical festivals — Bhaktapur's week-long celebration of the Nepali New Year, famous for its tug-of-war chariot pulling and the raising and felling of a colossal wooden pole. Set in the best-preserved medieval city in the Kathmandu Valley, it is a spectacle of crowds, ritual and raw energy.

What Bisket Jatra celebrates

Bisket Jatra marks the start of the Nepali (Bikram Sambat) year and, according to local legend, the slaying of two serpents (bi = serpent, syaku = laughter) that had killed a princess's suitors. The festival honours the fierce deity Bhairava and the goddess Bhadrakali, whose chariots are central to the celebrations.

When it falls

Unlike most Nepali festivals, Bisket Jatra follows the solar calendar, so it falls reliably around mid-April at the turn into the month of Baisakh, lasting about a week. That makes it easier to plan around than lunar festivals — pair it with our best time to visit Nepal guide.

How and where it is celebrated

The action centres on Taumadhi Square and the Bhairavnath area in Bhaktapur. A massive wooden chariot carrying Bhairava is hauled through the old streets, and two halves of the city compete in a tug-of-war to drag it toward their side — a heaving, sometimes chaotic contest. The other highlight is the lingo, a towering pole often more than 20 metres tall, raised near the river and ceremonially toppled on New Year's Day. Neighbouring Thimi and Bode add vermilion-powder throwing and tongue-piercing rituals.

What travellers will see

Expect enormous crowds packed into Bhaktapur's brick squares; the huge chariot rocking and lurching as teams pull; the dramatic raising and felling of the lingo; and a charged, competitive atmosphere very different from gentler festivals. The medieval backdrop of pagoda temples makes it intensely photogenic.

The festival spreads across several days and several neighbourhoods, each with its own ritual. In the nearby town of Thimi, devotees parade dozens of deity palanquins and hurl handfuls of orange sindoor (vermilion powder) at one another in a riotous "Sindoor Jatra". In Bode, a devotee undertakes a remarkable tongue-piercing ritual, walking through the town with a long iron spike through his tongue as an act of penance and protection. Back in Bhaktapur, smaller chariots of other gods join Bhairava's, and the rebuilt city squares — many restored since the 2015 earthquake — fill with music, food stalls and visiting families.

Bisket Jatra is also a wonderful excuse to explore Bhaktapur itself, a living open-air museum of Newar woodcarving, pottery and temple architecture.

Tips for visitors

• Stay overnight in Bhaktapur or arrive early, as the town fills and transport is busy.
• Keep back from the chariot ropes — the tug-of-war can turn rough and unpredictable.
• Watch the lingo events from a safe distance; the pole is enormous.
• Mind your belongings in dense crowds, and dress modestly for temple areas — see our Nepal culture and etiquette guide.

Bisket Jatra is the spring counterpart to Kathmandu's Indra Jatra and the cow festival Gai Jatra in the Newar calendar. See where it sits in the full festival calendar of Nepal.