Maha Ashtami — Sandhi Puja & Arati

Maha Ashtami is the most widely observed day of the festival. The morning begins with the pushpanjali, and the day turns on the Sandhi Puja — the forty-eight minutes joining Ashtami and Nabami.

The Global Connect feed follows the observance from the opening anjali through the Sandhi Puja and the evening arati, with commentary explaining each stage of the ritual for viewers unfamiliar with it.

Registered committees abroad join the same feed as their own local anjali begins, so that the observance moves westward across the day.

Visitors attending in person are asked to follow the committee's queue arrangements; the pandal is at its busiest through the morning.