Easter in India: Holy Week, Easter Sunday and Celebrations from Kerala to Goa

2 min read · North-East India

For Christians, Easter is the most important festival of the year: it celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ on the third day after his crucifixion. It falls on a Sunday between 22 March and 25 April — the first Sunday after the first full moon of spring — so its date changes every year.

Lent and Holy Week

Easter comes at the end of Lent, forty days of prayer, fasting and giving. The final week, Holy Week, has its own days:

Palm Sunday: remembering Jesus’s entry into Jerusalem, with processions carrying palm fronds — in Kerala, churches are full of tender coconut leaves.
Maundy Thursday: remembering the Last Supper, often with the washing of feet.
Good Friday: a solemn day of prayer, the Way of the Cross and fasting. It is a day of mourning, not celebration — so it is not a day for festive wishes.
Holy Saturday and the Easter Vigil: a night service with candles, readings and, at midnight, the joy of Easter.

Easter Sunday across India

Kerala: after the vigil mass, families break the Lenten fast with appam and chicken or mutton stew, duck roast and Easter cakes.
Goa: chocolate and marzipan Easter eggs, family lunches and, in some villages, Easter dances.
Mumbai: the churches of Bandra and the old Christian neighbourhoods fill for the services, followed by family feasts.
The North-East: in Mizoram, Meghalaya and Nagaland, Easter is celebrated with church services, choirs and community meals.

What to wear for Easter

Fresh, light colours: white, pastels and soft florals feel like spring — and like new beginnings.
For church: elegant and modest — a long kurta, a dress or a saree.
For the heat: Easter often falls in April, so cotton and mulmul are the most comfortable choice.

See our spring season collection for fresh florals and pastels.

Wear it for Easter