Kalidas Samaroh- Schedule 2026

Place : Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh
Date: 20th November - 27th November 2026
Significance: Dance, Music & Theatre Festival in memory of Mahakavi Kalidasa
Organised by: Kalidasa Akademi under the patronage of the department of culture Government of Madhya Pradesh 

Kalidasa Akademi
University Road
Ujjain 456010- MP
Phone- (0734) 3561047
Fax- (0734) 2515404
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You tube : https://www.youtube.com/@kalidassanskritacademy5431  (Watch Live)

The week long All India Kalidas Festival is organized by the Madhya Pradesh government in Ujjain every year on the occasion of Dev Prabodhini Ekadashi or Dev Uthani Ekadashi. Kalidasa Akademi at Ujjain was established by the government in order to organize the Samaroha every year in memory of Mahakavi Kalidasa who was born on the date coinciding with Dev Prabodhini Ekadashi. Kalidasa, the classical Sanskrit poet and playwright, had no par in his mastery over Sanskrit. His surviving works including the play 'Abhijnanashakuntalam', the lyric 'Meghaduta' in which the city of Ujjain and the shrine of Mahakala finds mention, and the epics 'Raghuvamsha' and 'Kumarasambhava', shaped India’s literary imagination. More on Kalidasa.

The Samaroh originally started in 1958, and inaugurated by the first President of India, turned out to be an important cultural event, seeing the participation of eminent scholars and high dignitaries. Well known authorities on Kalidasa like late Dr. V. Raghavan of Madras University, and Dr. Gauri Nath Shastri, the then Principal, Govt. Sanskrit College, Calcutta, themselves acted and produced the plays of Kalidasa for the first samroh.

Later in 1979, the samaroh was re-structured, and was organised as Akhila Bharatiya Kalidas Samaroh in collaboration with Vikram University under the patronage of the department of culture (Kala Parishad) of the Government of Madhya Pradesh. The Samaroh has a tradition of staging Sanskrit and Hindi plays based on the works of Mahakavi Kalidas, classical music concerts and dance performances, organizing discussions, seminars, lecture series, painting and sculpture competitions, and awarding the National Kalidas Award to artists who excel in creative arts.

Date & Day	Programme 2024	Time
November 12th (Tue)	Kalash Yatra
	Inauguration by Swami Satyamitranand Giri
November 13 (Wed)	Kathak dancer Rajshree Shirke Play -'Meghduttam'
November 14 (Thurs)	The Drama Research Center of Central Sanskrit University, Bhopal Play - 'Vasant Sena' based on 'Mrichchhakatikam'
November 15 (Fri)	K Shrivalli of Hyderabad with her guru Rashmi Menon - Mohiniyattam and Manipuri dance
November 16 (Sat)	Rahul Deshpande - Classical Music Ashwin Dalvi - 'Surbahar' instrument Anuradha Singh, Bhopal -  Ghughru
November 17 (Sun)	Aarohi Athavale from Delhi - Kathak dance
November 18 (Mon)
	Under Saraswat event, National Research Seminar will be held in three sessions. This year the topic of research seminar is Panchamahabhootavirmash in Mahakavi Kalidas' literature. Under the lecture series, there will be lectures by Prof. Murali Manohar Pathak, Vice Chancellor, Lal Bahadur Shastri Sanskrit University, New Delhi, Prof. Ramakant Pandey, Central Sanskrit University, Bhopal and Prof. Ravindra Mulye, Pune. This year, great Sanskrit poets from about 20 states of the country will recite their works in Sanskrit Kavi Sammelan. Eden Khoo of Malaysia, Philips Rochenski of Poland, Priyamvada Kafle, Kashinath Naipunye, Savina Devi and Prof. Vasudev Kafle are likely to be present in Saraswat event.