“Bachpan ki yaadein, garmi ki chhuttiyan, naani ka ghar, bade se pateele mein saare aam dubo ke rakh dena, aur phir ikatthe baith ke khana, kabhi choosne wala, kabhi kaatne wala aur phir mango shake bana ke peena. (Childhood memories of summer holidays at grandma’s home — putting all the mangoes in a big pot of water, then sitting together to eat them. Sometimes the kind you slurp, sometimes the kind you slice, and finally, blending them into a mango shake to enjoy).”
Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta evoked the nostalgia associated with the king of fruits as she inaugurated the 34th Mango Festival 2025 at Thyagaraj Stadium, Friday.
The festival is an effort to celebrate the different varieties of mangoes grown in various states and salutes the farmers.
“This year, many government departments and universities such as ICR Delhi, IAR Delhi, Central Institute for Subtropical Horticulture, GB Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Directorate of Horticulture UP, Bihar Agricultural University, Hisar Agricultural University are also participating, making this festival grander than ever before,” said Niharika Rai, MD & CEO, Delhi Tourism.
Chief Secretary Dharmendra, inviting all Delhiites to visit this festival, said, “Swaad, Sanskriti, Parampara aur Parivar ke saath samay bitaane ka achha avsar hai yah Aam Mahotsav. (The Mango Festival is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate flavour, culture, tradition, and spend quality time with family.”)
Appreciating Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision, Kapil Mishra, Minister of Art, Culture and Language, said most farmers in the festival have benefited and taken loans under one of the government schemes.
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Md. Haroon, a mango grower from Lucknow, has been coming to this festival to sell his mangoes every year. “Achhi bikri hoti hai isliye har saal aate hai yaha (I come here every year because sales are good.”)
Here’s what visitors can expect
The three-day festival from June 27-29 is open from 11 am to 9 pm for visitors. It includes an exhibition showcasing 400 varieties of mangoes, including Malda, Sindoori, Kesar, Amrapali, Mallika and many more.
In addition, visitors can explore a range of stalls selling diverse varieties of the fruit and various mango-based products.
Engaging competitions will be held, including slogan writing and quizzes for children, as well as a challenge to eat as many mangoes, with separate categories for men and women.
There is a selfie point where people can click photos. Cultural programmes will be held throughout the event.
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A special attraction is a real mango orchard inside the stadium. This gives children who have grown up in the city a chance to experience what a mango orchard looks like, said officials.
A free shuttle service is available for all visitors from the Dilli Haat-INA Metro station.
(Anushka Srivastava is an intern with The Indian Express)
