AGARTALA, August 18 (TIWN): Tripura celebrates Shri Krishna’s Janmasthami with religious fervor on Monday like rest of India. The temples of Agartala are being decorated with colorful lights and balloons. Jagganath Jew Temple and Shri Krishna Temple become the main attraction where hundreds of devotees throng to the temples.

History tells that the festival is celebrated on the eighth day (Ashtami) of the Krishna Paksha (dark fortnight) of the month of Bhadrapada (August–September) in the Hindu calendar. Rasa Lila, dramatic enactments of the life of Krishna, is a special feature in regions of Mathura and Vrindavan, and regions following Vaishnavism in Manipur.

While the Rasa Lila re-creates the flirtatious aspects of Krishna's youthful days, the Dahi Handi celebrate God's playful and mischievous side, where teams of young men form human towers to reach a high-hanging pot of butter and break it.

This tradition, also known as uriadi, is a major event in Tamil Nadu on Gokulashtami. Krishna Janmashtami is followed by the festival Nandotsav, which celebrates the occasion when Nanda Baba distributed gifts to the community in honour of the birth.