Nepal's artists joined millions of devotees across the country on Wednesday to celebrate Vijaya Dashami, the most significant day of Bada Dashain 2083, by receiving tika and jamara from their elders and exchanging warm greetings with family and relatives. From senior actors to emerging singers, members of the Nepali entertainment fraternity marked the festival at home with their loved ones, while those stationed abroad connected through video calls to receive blessings from elders they could not meet in person. Many also shared glimpses of their celebrations with fans through photos and videos posted on social media, adding a public, festive dimension to what is traditionally a family-centered occasion.
Tika, jamara and the blessings of elders
For artists whose professional lives revolve around film sets, recording studios and stage shows, Vijaya Dashami offered a rare pause. Celebrated on the tenth day of the fifteen-day Dashain festival, the day centers on a simple but emotionally powerful ritual. Elders apply tika, a mixture of rice, yogurt and vermilion, on the foreheads of younger family members, place sprigs of jamara on their heads and ears, and offer blessings for long life, health and prosperity. In return, the younger generation bows and touches the feet of their elders, seeking their good wishes.
Members of the artist community embraced these rituals with visible enthusiasm. Younger artists received tika from parents, grandparents and senior relatives, while elders in the fraternity were seen bestowing blessings on children and younger family members. Greetings were exchanged throughout the day as relatives visited one another's homes, continuing the tradition of Dashain reunions that bring together family members who often live apart for work or study.
Blessings without borders
Not every artist could be physically present with their families this year. Some members of the fraternity, currently abroad for work or other commitments, marked the festival by receiving tika and blessings virtually, joining family gatherings through video calls and phone conversations. The practice, which has grown increasingly common among Nepali families separated by distance, allowed elders to bless their children in real time even across continents.
These virtual celebrations highlighted how deeply the festival is woven into the lives of Nepalis living outside the country. Dashain remains the time of year when families make every effort to reunite, and when travel home is impossible, technology becomes the bridge that keeps traditions alive. For the artists celebrating from abroad, the digital tika and the sound of familiar voices carried the same emotional weight as the ritual performed at home.
Social media fills with festive colors
As the day progressed, social media platforms turned into a vibrant gallery of Dashain celebrations. Artists posted photographs and videos showing themselves in festive attire, with tika on their foreheads and jamara tucked neatly behind their ears, surrounded by parents, siblings, children and relatives. The glimpses offered fans a personal look at the stars away from the spotlight, capturing moments of laughter, hugs and blessings.
Photo coverage compiled by Ratopati and Global Aawaj documented how widely the celebrations spread across the fraternity, with artists from film, music and television all taking part. Fans responded warmly, filling comment sections with Dashain wishes and greetings of their own.
The mood across the artist community was one of shared joy. Whether posted from a family courtyard in Nepal or a living room thousands of kilometers away, the messages carried a common theme: gratitude toward elders, love for family and wishes for peace and prosperity for everyone celebrating the festival.
The festival behind the celebrations
Vijaya Dashami is the centerpiece of Dashain, Nepal's longest and most widely observed festival, celebrated over fifteen days. The festival honors the victory of the goddess Durga over the demon Mahishasura, symbolizing the triumph of good over evil. Jamara, the yellow-green barley shoots placed along with the tika, is sown on the first day of the festival and nurtured in darkness until it is distributed on Dashami.
The days surrounding Vijaya Dashami each carry their own significance:
- Ghatasthapana opens the festival with the sowing of jamara and the installation of the sacred vessel for worship.
- Fulpati, the seventh day, is marked by the ceremonial procession and offering of sacred plants and flowers.
- Maha Asthami and Maha Navami, the eighth and ninth days, are dedicated to worship of the goddess and special offerings.
- Kojagrat Purnima concludes the festival on the night of the full moon.
In the days leading up to Dashami, people across the country travel to their hometowns to be with their elders, while markets bustle with shoppers buying new clothes, gifts and ritual items, and homes are cleaned and decorated for the festivities.
For the entertainment fraternity, whose members spend much of the year on film sets, concert tours and promotional events, Dashain serves as both a religious observance and a homecoming. This year's celebrations reflected that dual character: sacred rituals performed with devotion at home, festive greetings exchanged with colleagues and fans, and the unmistakable warmth of a community celebrating together, in person and online, the festival that binds Nepalis across the world.
