For Nepalis, the new year begins quietly, with an evening dinner, a night spent waiting for the first sunrise of another year with loved ones. In the Kathmandu Valley, the new year arrives differently. It rejoices with devotion and communal celebrations.

In Bhaktapur, you walk into the beats of drums, chants, and the slow creak of wooden wheels rolling across streets. Here, Biska Jatra marks the arrival of the new year. Celebrated over eight nights and nine days, the festival draws communities into shared acts of faith and festivity. On the eve, locals raise a towering wooden pole and hoist two long flags, which are worshipped as Yoshin Dyo. As it stands upright against the sky, it symbolically declares the beginning of a new year.

At the Nyatapola temple in Bhaktapur, two chariots─one carrying Bhairavnath and the other Bhadrakali—are pulled through the city. Built entirely of wood, the chariots move through different sections of the city pulling from opposite sides. The pulling is communal, between two communities, turning the entire square into a living space.

Bhaktapur isn’t alone in this celebration. Across the valley─ Thimi, Bode, Nagadesh, Tigani, Pakadole, Lokanthali, Khadpu, Dhulikhel, Tokha, Sunakothi, and Chaukot—celebrate in their own way, adding their colour and story to the larger festival.

In several towns, palanquins carrying local deities are lifted high and carried through streets in vibrant processions. In Bode, a local man undergoes the ritual known as Mye Pwa: Khanegu, in which he pierces his tongue with a long iron spike as an offering for communal protection and well-being. The moment is unsettling, intense, yet deeply human in its expression of faith.

In Thimi, Bhui Sinha Jatra is observed as part of Biska Jatra on the second day of the new year. Vermilion powder is thrown upon one another and onto the nineteen palanquins, each carrying a deity. Locals and visitors alike are drenched in colour, and by the end of the celebration, the streets glow in shades of crimson and orange.

This is how the new year pulses here.

This new year, step beyond routine and enter the chaos, colour and devotion of Biska Jatra. Let this festival welcome you into the beginning of the new year 2083. May it bring good health, well-being, and prosperity.