Dussehra 2026 on TV: Ravan Dahan Live, Festive Movies and Channels

Dussehra 2026, also called Vijayadashami, falls on Tuesday, 20 October 2026. For a lot of families the day ends in front of the TV: the evening Ravan Dahan from a big Ramlila ground, then a festive movie with everyone home. This guide covers the date and timings, the news channels that usually carry the burning of the effigies live, the movie channels to keep on, the one big TV premiere actually announced for the festive weekend, and how it all leads into the new Ramayana film on 5 November.

When is Dussehra 2026?

Most panchangs, and the central government's 2026 holiday list, put Dussehra on Tuesday, 20 October. Some readers are asking about 21 October. The reason: the Dashami tithi begins around 12:50 PM on 20 October and ends around 2:11 PM on 21 October, so it runs across two dates.

• Shardiya Navratri: began on Sunday, 11 October, according to most panchangs (a few calendars use 12 October). Durga Ashtami and Maha Navami both fall on Monday, 19 October, because the tithis overlap this year.
• Dussehra / Vijayadashami: Tuesday, 20 October.
• Vijay Muhurat: about 2:00 PM to 2:45 PM for New Delhi, per several panchangs. Other cities can be 10 to 30 minutes off, so check a local panchang.
• Ravan Dahan: after sunset on 20 October. Each Ramlila committee sets its own time, usually somewhere between about 5:45 PM and 8 PM.
• Bengal and the east: Bengali panchangs place Bijoya Dashami, with Sindoor Khela and the immersion of Durga idols, on Wednesday, 21 October.

Where to watch Ravan Dahan and Ramlila live on TV

The big Delhi Ramlilas are the usual focus of live coverage on Dussehra evening. The Luv Kush Ramlila on the Red Fort grounds is listed for 11 to 21 October this year, with its Ravan, Kumbhkaran and Meghnad effigies to be burned on 20 October. Political leaders and film stars often attend these events. Hindi news channels tend to switch to the effigies as they burn and then cover celebrations in other cities. No broadcaster has published an exact 2026 schedule yet, so treat the list below as a set of channels that usually carry this kind of coverage, not a confirmed line-up.

• Hindi news: Aaj Tak, ABP News, India TV, Zee News, News Nation and NDTV India.
• Public broadcaster: DD News and DD National for official events.
• Regional celebrations: Mysuru Dasara's Jamboo Savari procession usually gets live coverage on Kannada news channels such as TV9 Kannada. Kullu Dussehra in Himachal starts on Vijayadashami and goes on for a week. For Bengal's Bijoya Dashami on 21 October, try ABP Ananda.
• Devotional channels: Aastha and Sanskar carry Navratri and Dussehra programming.

Festive movie channels to tune into

On festival holidays, Hindi movie channels mostly show big family entertainers and action films. These are the ones to keep handy over the long weekend:

• Hindi: Star Gold HD, Sony Max HD, Colors Cineplex HD, Star Utsav Movies and B4U Movies.
• Tamil: Sun TV HD and KTV HD, where the festival is celebrated as Ayudha Puja and Vijayadashami.
• Telugu and Kannada: Sun Gemini Movies HD and Colors Kannada Cinema.

TV premieres announced for the Dussehra weekend

The only festive premiere we could confirm from more than one source for 18 to 20 October is Dhurandhar The Revenge. Aditya Dhar's sequel, starring Ranveer Singh, has its World TV Premiere on Star Gold on Sunday, 18 October, at 7 PM according to Bollywood Hungama. JioStar's festive premiere slate, announced on 22 September, also lists Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam versions of the film on its regional channels in October, without exact dates. Next on that slate are Dhurandhar on 25 October across several Hindi movie channels and Welcome To The Jungle as a World Television Premiere on Star Gold on 1 November.

We found nothing confirmed for Sony Max, Colors Cineplex or the other Hindi movie channels on Dussehra itself. Channels usually announce festival movie line-ups only a few days ahead, so check their promos over the weekend and don't trust lists that claim to know already. If you want to catch up before the premiere, Dhurandhar and Dhurandhar: The Revenge are both on NoWireTV.

Good-versus-evil classics that suit the day

Dussehra marks the victory of good over evil, so stories from the Ramayana and big hero-versus-villain epics fit the day. They also tend to come back around the festival season:

• Ramayan (1987) – Ramanand Sagar's TV series with Arun Govil and Deepika Chikhlia, still the version many families picture first.
• Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama (1992) – the Indo-Japanese animated film, a favourite with children.
• Adipurush (2023) – Om Raut's retelling with Prabhas.
• Hanu-Man (2024) – Prasanth Varma's superhero film starring Teja Sajja, with roots in mythology.
• Bāhubali: The Epic – both Baahubali films combined into one, which suits a long festive evening.
• Sita Ramam – not a mythological film, but a love story whose title nods to Sita and Ram.

From Dussehra to Ramayana on 5 November

This year's Dussehra comes just before one of the biggest releases of the year. Nitesh Tiwari's Ramayana: Part 1, with Ranbir Kapoor as Rama, Sai Pallavi as Sita and Yash as Ravana, releases worldwide on 5 November 2026. The makers confirmed that date on 11 October, replacing the 6 November date shown in an earlier trailer. According to reports, advance bookings open on Dussehra, so 20 October is when the film's ticket rush should begin. The Ramayana release date, cast and budget guide has the full details.

Read next

• Ramayana trailer 2: what's new, and did the VFX win people over?
• Diwali 2026 movies: every big film in cinemas and on OTT
• Upcoming Bollywood movies in October and November 2026

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