Chhath Puja 2026 in Anaheim: Events, Puja & Where to Celebrate

On the evening of November 15, 2026, thousands of Indian Americans in cities across the United States will stand at the edges of lakes, rivers, and community pools, holding offerings of fruit, sugarcane, and rice aloft in both hands as the sun descends. This is Sandhya Arghya — the evening offering of Chhath Puja — and it may be the most visually striking ritual the Indian diaspora performs in public. For the growing Bihari and Eastern UP community in Anaheim and Orange County, 2026 marks another year of bringing this ancient solar festival to the Southern California landscape.

Chhath Puja falls across four days this year: Nahay Khay on November 13, Kharna on November 14, Sandhya Arghya on November 15, and Usha Arghya at dawn on November 16. The festival honors Surya, the Sun God, and Chhathi Maiya, the sixth-day deity associated with fertility and the protection of children. It is observed with an intensity and physical rigor rarely seen in Indian devotional practice.

What the Four Days Involve

The festival is not a single event but an accumulating sequence. On Nahay Khay, devotees take a ritual bath, often in a river or body of water, and prepare a single home-cooked meal — typically rice, chana dal, and bottle gourd — eaten once before sunset. The following day, Kharna, is a full fast maintained from sunrise through the evening, broken only after the household puja and an offering of rice kheer and roti.

The third day, Sandhya Arghya, is the most public and photographed moment of the festival. Devotees — overwhelmingly women, though men observe alongside — carry bamboo baskets called soop filled with seasonal fruits, thekua (a wheat and jaggery sweet baked specifically for Chhath), coconut, and sugarcane. They wade into the water and hold these offerings toward the setting sun. The fourth morning brings Usha Arghya at the first light, completing the vrat (fast) which is broken only after this final offering.

The physical demand is considerable. Many devotees do not eat or drink for over 36 hours, and the ritual requires standing in water at the edge of a lake or pool in November — in Anaheim, that means temperatures that can drop into the low 50s Fahrenheit overnight.

The Indian American Community in Orange County

The Indian American population of Orange County has grown steadily over the past two decades, with notable concentrations in Anaheim, Irvine, and Buena Park. Unlike New Jersey's Little India in Edison or the Bay Area's Fremont community — where more than 1,700 devotees have gathered for Chhath at Quarry Lakes Regional Recreation Area — Southern California's South Asian community is geographically dispersed. It has historically lacked a single neighborhood or corridor that functions as a cultural center, which makes community organizations all the more important.

The South Asian Network is a Southern California-based organization that focuses on the health, civil rights, and wellbeing of South Asian residents across the region. For arts and cultural programming, the Ektaa Center — an Orange County-based organization dedicated to Indian performing arts — produces events including Diwali Fest and Ektaa Fest, which bring the community together across traditions. Neither organization coordinates Chhath specifically, but both represent the infrastructure through which community events tend to organize themselves in a dispersed metro area.

For Chhath specifically, the most direct path to finding a 2026 celebration in Anaheim and the surrounding area is to contact local temples and Bihari community associations. Search for a Chhath Puja Samiti in Orange County, or check temple bulletin boards and community Facebook groups in the weeks leading up to November 13.

Where to Eat Around the Festival

The ritual foods of Chhath — thekua, rice kheer, the specific fruits offered to the sun — are prepared at home by devotees. But in the days before and after the festival, the Indian restaurants of Orange County and its neighbors provide the other half of the picture.

Khan Saab Desi Craft Kitchen in nearby Fullerton has earned four consecutive Michelin Bib Gourmand awards, the guide's recognition for quality cooking at moderate prices. The restaurant's chef, Imran Ali Mookhi, draws from Indian, Pakistani, and Afghan cooking traditions, and the menu is fully halal — an unusual combination in Southern California's Indian dining scene. The smoked beef kabob and chicken karahi have become signature dishes. For a community whose food traditions span North India, Punjab, and the Northwest Frontier, Khan Saab offers something closer to the breadth of that culinary geography than a typical subcontinental restaurant.

For grocery provisions — spices for puja preparations, fresh produce for the bamboo baskets, specific flours for thekua — Orange County has a range of Indian grocery stores, particularly along Artesia Boulevard in Artesia and Buena Park, which forms the county's most concentrated South Asian commercial strip.

Planning Your 2026 Celebration

Chhath requires a water body large enough for wading. In Southern California, community groups have used parks with ponds and permitted sections of lakes. The Los Angeles area and Orange County have both hosted celebrations in recent years, and 2026 is likely to see similar events. Permit applications typically go in weeks in advance, and the organizing samiti will announce the venue through community channels once it is confirmed.

If you are participating rather than observing, the essential preparations — the bamboo soop, the specific fruits and grains, the thekua baked the night before — are best sourced through Indian grocery stores in the week before Nahay Khay. If you are visiting as a witness to what has become one of the most photographed Indian festivals on American shores, the Sandhya Arghya on November 15 at sunset is the moment to attend.

FAQ

When is Chhath Puja in 2026? The four-day festival runs from November 13 (Nahay Khay) through November 16 (Usha Arghya), with the main sunset offering, Sandhya Arghya, on November 15.

Is Chhath Puja celebrated in Anaheim specifically? Orange County's Indian community is dispersed across several cities. Celebrations are typically organized by local samitis and may be held at parks or water bodies in Anaheim, Irvine, or neighboring cities. Check local temple bulletin boards and community social media groups close to the festival dates.

What should non-Hindu visitors know before attending a Chhath gathering? Chhath is a deeply personal and physically demanding observance. Visitors who are not participating in the vrat are welcome at the public sunset and sunrise gatherings, but the event is not a performance — it is an act of devotion. Quiet, respectful observation is appropriate.

What food is traditional during Chhath? Thekua (a wheat and jaggery crisp), rice kheer, and specific seasonal fruits are the ritual foods, prepared at home. Outside the puja itself, North and East Indian cooking — biryani, dal, sabzi — forms the broader food culture of the community.

Are there Indian grocery stores in Anaheim? The largest concentration is along Artesia Boulevard in the Artesia and Buena Park area, about 30 minutes from central Anaheim. Several stores there carry puja supplies, Indian vegetables, and regional ingredients.

Bottom Line

Chhath Puja 2026 falls November 13-16, with the central sunset gathering on November 15. For the Bihari and Purvanchali Indian American families who observe it in Anaheim and Orange County, the festival asks more than perhaps any other Indian observance — a 36-hour fast, a wading entry into cold water, and offerings made in public at dawn and dusk. If you are part of this community, connect with local samitis and temple networks now to find the nearest venue. If you are coming to witness, November 15 at sunset is your hour.