Bastar Pandum 2026 is a major tribal cultural festival of Chhattisgarh. This festival, organized from 07 to 09 February with more than 54 thousand participants, will give national and international recognition to the folk art, dance, music and traditions of Bastar.
Raipur. Bastar Pandum is a major cultural, community and natural festival of Bastar region of Chhattisgarh. This event is a powerful medium to preserve and present tribal traditions, folk arts and traditional lifestyle to the world. The festival features traditional dances, instruments like mandar-flute, traditional costumes, wood, bamboo and metal crafts, as well as a rich glimpse of tribal food. Bastar Pandum works to provide a platform to local artists as well as connect the youth with their cultural roots. In this event, participants from different areas of Bastar will showcase 12 traditional cultural genres, which will bring alive the self-identity of Bastar.
Bastar Pandum 2026: Historic registration of more than 54 thousand participants
This year’s Bastar Pandum event has broken all the old records of popularity. Now it is not just a competition but has become a huge festival of folk culture. If we look at the figures, in the year 2025, 15,596 participants had participated in the block level competitions, whereas this year this number has increased more than three times to 54,745. This figure shows the awareness and pride of Bastar residents towards their culture, traditions and folk arts. Dantewada district has been at the forefront in the entire division with 24,267 registrations. After this, thousands of participants from Kanker, Bijapur and Sukma districts also registered their strong participation.
Bastar Pandum 2026: Tribal culture ready to dominate the world stage
The fragrance of Bastar’s soil and its rich tribal culture is once again ready to make its mark on the global stage. Division level Bastar Pandum will be organized from 07 to 09 February 2026. Unprecedented enthusiasm is being seen in the entire division regarding this event. 84 teams and 705 artists selected through tough competition at the district level will showcase their art in these three days. The main attractions should be-
- vibrant beats of tribal dance
- echo of traditional songs
- Staging of folk plays
The confluence of Bastar’s art and taste will be seen in 12 genres.
12 different cultural genres will be showcased in the division level competition.
- 192 artists in tribal dance
- 134 artists in tribal drama
- 65 artists will perform traditional instruments
Along with this, 56 participants will attract the audience with the aroma and taste of traditional tribal dishes. Apart from this, Bastar’s rare forest medicines, paintings, crafts, traditional jewelery and regional literature will also be displayed, which will introduce the new generation to its heritage.
Strong participation of mother power in Bastar Pandum
The most beautiful picture of Bastar Pandum 2026 is the increasing participation of women. Of the 705 artists who reached the divisional level, 340 are women and 365 are men. This balanced participation shows that women are walking shoulder to shoulder with men in preserving and carrying forward the culture of Bastar. Overall, Bastar Pandum 2026 is poised to become an unforgettable folk festival with its grandeur, mass participation and cultural diversity.