Mahalaya 2026 on Radio: How to Hear Mahishasuramardini Live

Mahalaya 2026 falls on Saturday, 10 October, and Akashvani Kolkata traditionally opens the day with Mahishasuramardini at 4 a.m. IST. You can hear it on an ordinary radio set in West Bengal, on All India Radio’s official live streams and YouTube channel, or on any internet radio player on your phone, and you can record it if you would rather not wake up at 3:45.

This guide covers the date and time, a little of the history, every practical way to tune in, what time it airs in other countries, and a short checklist so the stream actually works when the conch shell sounds.

When is Mahalaya 2026, and what time does it air?

Mahalaya is the new-moon day (Mahalaya Amavasya) that closes Pitru Paksha. In 2026 that is Saturday, 10 October, which means the radio programme should begin at 4:00 a.m. IST on 10 October. The recording runs for about an hour and a half, so it ends around 5:30 a.m.

Durga Puja follows about a week later, with Vijaya Dashami on 21 October 2026. Broadcast schedules can change, so glance at Akashvani’s announcements a day or two before and set your alarm by the official time rather than by a forwarded message.

Why Mahishasuramardini is still a radio ritual

The programme was first broadcast from Calcutta in the early 1930s. Its soul is Birendra Krishna Bhadra’s recitation of the Chandi Path in Sanskrit and Bengali, woven between devotional songs. It was performed live for decades and has aired as a recording since 1966.

People are loyal to it. In 1976 All India Radio replaced it with a new version featuring Uttam Kumar’s voice, and listeners disliked the change so much that the original returned. That is why, for many families, Mahalaya still means a radio on the table in the dark, not a video on a screen.

Five ways to listen to Mahalaya on radio or online

• A radio set in West Bengal: tune to Akashvani Kolkata the way your parents did. Check the dial the evening before so you are not searching at 4 a.m.
• Akashvani’s live page: All India Radio lists its live streams by state on its official live radio page. It works in a phone or laptop browser with nothing to install.
• Prasar Bharati’s NewsOnAir app: the public broadcaster’s own app carries live All India Radio channels, which is handy if you prefer an app to a browser tab.
• All India Radio on YouTube: AIR has streamed the Mahalaya broadcast on its official YouTube channel in recent years, which helps listeners outside Bengal and abroad.
• An internet radio app: a general radio player lets you keep the station alongside your usual ones and, in some apps, record it. More on that below.

Set up your phone the night before

Most missed Mahalayas are not about the broadcast. They are about a phone that died, a stream that asked for an update, or an alarm set for p.m. Ten minutes on Friday night fixes all of that.

1. Charge the phone fully and keep the charger by the bed.
2. Open your chosen stream (browser, NewsOnAir, YouTube or radio app) once in the evening to confirm it plays.
3. Install any pending app updates now, not at 3:58.
4. Set an alarm for 3:45 a.m. on Saturday, 10 October, and double-check it says a.m.
5. Turn off battery saver for the app you will use, since aggressive power saving can pause audio when the screen goes off.
6. Connect a Bluetooth speaker or keep earphones ready if others in the house want to sleep through it.

What time is Mahalaya in the US, UK, Gulf and Australia?

4:00 a.m. IST on 10 October is 22:30 UTC on Friday, 9 October. For Bengalis abroad, that usually means listening on Friday evening or Saturday morning:

• London (BST): 11:30 p.m., Friday 9 October
• New York and Toronto (EDT): 6:30 p.m., Friday 9 October
• California (PDT): 3:30 p.m., Friday 9 October
• Dubai (GST): 2:30 a.m., Saturday 10 October
• Singapore (SGT): 6:30 a.m., Saturday 10 October
• Sydney (AEDT): 9:30 a.m., Saturday 10 October

Can’t wake up at 4 a.m.? Record it and listen later

If 4 a.m. is out of the question, record the live stream and play it when you are up. RadioBlink, our free Android radio app, can record live radio streams to your phone so you can listen later. If the station you want is not already in its list, add it as a custom station using its stream URL, start recording before 4 a.m., and leave the phone on charge.

The same app has a sleep timer, useful if you want to hear the opening and drift back to sleep without the stream running all morning. It is free with no ads. You can also simply play AIR’s YouTube upload later in the day, though many people feel the early-morning live broadcast is the point. If you enjoy the idea of audio fitting around your routine, see how to turn your commute into a learning hour.

If the stream stops at 4 a.m.

Thousands of people open the same streams at the same minute, so a hiccup is possible. Don’t spend ten minutes fighting one source; switch to another.

• Toggle between Wi-Fi and mobile data. Home Wi-Fi routers sometimes drop overnight.
• Move from the app to Akashvani’s live page in a browser, or the other way round.
• Try AIR’s YouTube channel as a backup.
• If you are in Bengal, a cheap battery radio is still the most reliable option. Our look at internet radio vs FM explains why each has its place.