Bandra Mount Mary Feast 2026: Novena, Fair Dates Announced Amid East Indian Community’s Stall And Language Demands

Mumbai: As Bandra prepares for the annual feast and fair at the Basilica of Our Lady of the Mount, the festival schedule has been announced.

Religious Services To Be Held In Seven Languages

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The novena will be held from September 4 to 12, with Sunday, September 13, celebrated as the feast day of Mother Mary. Religious services during the period will be held in English, Hindi, Konkani, Marathi, Tamil, Gujarati and Malayalam. The octave, an eight-day celebration of the feast, will continue from September 13 to 20.

The Bandra fair, an adjunct to the religious festival, will also be held from September 13 to 20. Featuring traditional Goan and East Indian food, entertainment rides and music, it is one of the largest such celebrations in the city. On Friday, the church released the list of allottees for the 130-odd stalls along the path to the Mount. Another 20 stalls on the steps are reserved for nuns and clergy. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) separately auctions over 400 stalls on four roads leading to the Mount Mary steps.

Online Bidding System Faces Opposition From Traditional Vendors

In recent years, the church administration has replaced the practice of allocating stalls on the steps to families that have traditionally run them with an online bidding system. The move has faced opposition from these families. Rupesh Gomes, whose family has run a stall on the steps since 1947, said he did not get a slot this year. “Unfortunately, many who bid for slots have no experience in the business. They sublet the stall for more money,” he alleged.

This year, the Mobai Gaothan Panchayat (MGP), which represents native Roman Catholics, has demanded reservation of stalls for them and greater prominence for Marathi during the octave, describing themselves as the founding community of the festival.

MGP Seeks Preservation Of Traditional Festival Identity

The MGP has sought priority for East Indian handicrafts, traditional food and merchandise to preserve the traditional village-festival character of the fair, or ‘Vandar Cha Sann’. It has also demanded that the East Indian hymn Devache Mae be used as the recessional hymn at all octave masses instead of Konkani, and an East Indian Marathi mass on the final Saturday, following its annual ‘Mot Mauli Purcessao’ procession from Mahim Church to Mount Mary.

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The group has also sought a stall at the entrance to raise funds for its proposed East Indian Bhavan and St Gonsalo Garcia Chapel.

“Vandar Cha Sann is not just a fair, it is our traditional village festival. The indigenous people founded it, but today we have no priority in our own festival. We are not against anyone, but we are demanding our rightful share and respect for our state language Marathi and our East Indian dialect,” said Vicky Misquitta, MGP spokesperson, who has sought a meeting with the church authorities.

Deacon Navin D'Silva of the Basilica ruled out any change in the stall allocation process. “The allocation process is all done. The new system is clear and it will continue,” he said.

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