Bestu Varas
Bestu Varas is the New Year's Day for Gujaratis and this falls on the day next to Diwali. Traditional Gujaratis follow Vikram Samwat or Bikram Samwat. According to Hindu calendar systems the Vikrama calendar begins with the month of Baishakh/Chaitra (April), or Kartak (October/November) in Gujarat.
Bestu Baras generally falls in month of October or November. On this day, people greet each other on this day with "Nutan Varsha Abhinandan" i.e. Happy New Year or with "Saal Mubaarak" which is an Urdu saying but is said commonly by Gujarati people. The day starts with the heavy fire works, to welcome New Year, in the early morning as Hindus believe morning starts at 4 am. The local young boys sell raw salt (collected from Salt evaporation pond) calling it "sabras" means all taste, to make the locals' new year prosperous. Houses are decorated with the aaso palav & marigolds (galgota) toran (Door hangings) and rangoli beside front door with different designs and writings such as "Happy New Year", "Nutan Varshabhinandan" (નૂતન વર્ષાભિનંદન). The people get dressed with new clothes and visit their neighbours and relatives to greet them. Home made snacks like "Farsaan" (ફરસાણ) and sweets are offered to the guests and neighbours who come to wish the new year.
Read more about this topic: Indian New Year's Days