The Bandra Fair is a week-long fair held annually in the Bandra suburb of Mumbai (Bombay), India. It starts on the Sunday following the 8th of September (Bandra Fest) at Mount St Mary Church; the festival of the Nativity of Our Lady, the virgin-mother of Jesus Christ.[1][2]
The Bandra Fair is estimatedly around 300 years old. According to legend, the celebration began when a statue of St Mary was discovered floating in the Arabian Sea between 1700 and 1760, which a Koli Christian fisherman had already dreamt about earlier.[3] Monti Fest celebrated by Goans, Karwaris & Mangaloreans is similar to the Bandra Fest, and coincides with the Nativity.
- ^ Mount Mary fair begins today Indian Express, 8 September 2007
- ^ Vinod, Nibandh. "Mount St Mary Festival 2023: Date, History and Significance of the Bandra Fair in Mumbai", News 18, September 12, 2023
- ^ Shika Shah (17 September 2008). "Bandra's spirit captured in cakes, tattoos". MiD DAY. Archived from the original on 20 September 2008. Retrieved 27 September 2008.