Tihar 2026 in Canada: Bhai Tika, Laxmi Puja and Deusi-Bhailo Celebrations
The festival of lights runs November 8–11 for Canada's Nepali community — Bhai Tika on Wednesday, November 11. Here are the dates and what the diaspora is plann
By Nepalese Events Australia Editorial
Published: 2026-10-01T03:00:00.000000Z
Category: Festivals
Three weeks after Dashain closes, the Nepali community in Canada gets its second major festival: Tihar 2026 runs November 8–11, ending with Bhai Tika on Wednesday, November 11.
Canada Tihar 2026 dates
• Laxmi Puja / Kukur Tihar: Sunday, November 8
• Gai Puja: Monday, November 9
• Govardhan Puja / Mha Puja: Tuesday, November 10
• Bhai Tika: Wednesday, November 11
The dates follow the 2083 BS holiday calendar. As with Dashain, individual families follow their own pandit's tithi guidance, so the home observance may split across an evening depending on where the lunar day lands in Canadian time zones.
How Tihar works in Canada
Tihar translates unusually well to the diaspora because its core is domestic: the dog-and-crow observances, the Laxmi Puja evening when homes light up, and Bhai Tika between siblings all happen inside the family. In Canadian cities the public-facing layer — Deusi-Bhailo groups doing the rounds, community Laxmi Puja gatherings — runs through the same associations that organise Dashain: Toronto and Brampton's established groups, the Niagara community, Ottawa's association (which already combined its festivals into an October 11 Dashain-Tihar celebration), and the BC groups around Surrey and Vancouver.
The practical Canadian Tihar
A few things diaspora families figure out fast: Bhai Tika on a Wednesday means most sibling ceremonies happen in the evening or get moved to the weekend; Deusi-Bhailo fundraising groups use the festival to collect for community causes — and this year, with Teej already cancelled in flood solidarity, expect several groups to dedicate collections to flood relief. Families sending festival money home can watch the CAD–NPR rate, and the festival calendar carries the full 2083 schedule.
After Tihar
The November calendar then rolls into the community's quieter season — association AGMs, the winter fundraising dinners, and the first planning meetings for the spring festival cycle that now has official civic weight behind it after Toronto's Nepali Heritage Month proclamation. New event announcements will land in the Canada news section as they're confirmed.
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