Sankat Mochan Sangeet Samaroh

The Sankat Mochan Sangeet Samaroh is held at the Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple in Varanasi to coincide with the Hindu festival of Hanuman Jayanti. Started in the 1920s by Mahant Hanuman Prasad Poddar, this classical Indian music and dance festival runs over four to five nights and draws close to sixty artists from across the country. What sets it apart is that it is entirely free, open admission for the public and no fees for performers, with no VIP seating or special treatment, in a spirit of shared devotion.