Step inside the country's most powerful festivals, rituals and landscapes, with a National Award-winning photographer as your mentor.
Upcoming Photo Tours See All ToursIndia Photography Tours by Arun Saha Photography (ASP) take you inside the country's most powerful festivals, rituals and landscapes, with a National Award-winning photographer as your mentor. From the colour storms of Holi in Mathura to the fire rituals of Theyyam in Kerala and the lamp-lit ghats of Dev Deepawali in Varanasi, every tour is planned around the best light, the right access and the real story.
These are not sightseeing trips with a camera. They are small-group cultural photography tours in India, led by Arun Saha, a former Indian Air Force technical photographer with 30 years of experience, who teaches composition, light, storytelling and post-processing in the field.
Whether you are a first-time traveller or a seasoned professional, this guide covers every India photography tour we run, when to go, what you will shoot and how to choose the right one. Check dates on Upcoming Photo Tours →
India's festivals are crowded, fast and often hard to access. Many of the best moments happen in temple courtyards, village lanes or before dawn, places a solo traveller rarely finds in time. Photography tours in India led by an experienced mentor solve that.
Arun has returned to the same festivals for many seasons and knows the families, priests and organisers who open doors.
Every itinerary is timed to rituals and light, not traffic and checkout times.
Festivals like Holi and Kulasai Dasara need planning; ASP handles camera protection, positioning and logistics.
Each tour doubles as a photography workshop, with briefings, field guidance and editing sessions.
You learn to photograph people with consent and context, not as props.
Read Photography Mentor in India with Arun Saha → to see how the mentoring works.
Choose your India photography tour by region and by what you love to shoot.
| Tour | Region | Best for | Tour page |
|---|---|---|---|
| India Holi Photo Tour | Mathura, Varanasi, Rajasthan | Colour, crowds, festival action | Holi Photo Tour |
| Theyyam, Kathakali & Kalaripayattu | Kannur, Kerala | Ritual, low light, performance | Theyyam Photo Tour |
| Kulasai Dasara | Tamil Nadu | Masked devotees, street portraits | Kulasai Dasara Tour |
| Gajon Photo Tour | Gajon Festival, Rural Bengal | Ascetic rituals, devotion and village life | Gajon Photo Tour |
| Varanasi & Holi Tour | Varanasi | Ghats, aartis, sadhus and Masan Holi | Varanasi & Holi Tour |
| Pushkar Photo Tour | Pushkar, Rajasthan | Camel fair, pilgrims and desert life | Pushkar Photo Tour |
| Varanasi Photo Tour | Dev Deepawali, Varanasi | Ghats lit with thousands of diyas | Varanasi Photo Tour |
| Allahabad (Prayagraj) Photo Tour | Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh | Kumbh Mela, sadhus, Sangam ghats | Maha Kumbh Photo Tour |
| Pattankodoli Photo Tour | Pattankodoli, Kolhapur | Turmeric festival and Kolhapur kushti akhara | Pattankodoli Photo Tour |
| Kolkata Durga Puja & Rural Bengal | West Bengal | Idols, pandals, rituals | Durga Puja Photo Tour |
| Jejuri Bhandara Festival | Maharashtra | Turmeric festival, temple scenes | Jejuri Photo Tour |
| Ashadi Wari Palkhi | Maharashtra | Pilgrimage, documentary | Ashadi Wari Tour |
| Ganpati Visarjan | Mumbai | Processions, street photography | Ganpati Visarjan Tour |
| Nashik Photo Tour | Nashik & Trimbakeshwar, Maharashtra | Simhastha Kumbh, Godavari ghats, sadhus | Nashik Photo Tour |
| Leh Ladakh | Ladakh | Landscapes, monasteries | Ladakh Photo Tour |
| Royal Rajasthan – Desert Odyssey | Rajasthan | Deserts, rural life, architecture | Desert Odyssey |
Also available: Mumbai Photo Tour, Shreenath Veer Mhaskoba and bespoke private tours year-round.
North India holds some of the most photographed festivals on earth, and some of the hardest to shoot well. These cultural photography tours in India focus on faith, colour and the rhythm of the holy cities.
Holi in the Braj region is unlike anywhere else. In Barsana and Nandgaon, Lathmar Holi turns lanes into clouds of pink and yellow, while Vrindavan's temples fill with flowers and chanting. The tour continues to Varanasi for Masan Holi and into Rajasthan for a royal, rural finale.
Varanasi is India's oldest living city and the subject of Arun's book Varanasi – A Passage to Immortality. You photograph the ghats at dawn, the evening Ganga aarti, sadhus, boatmen and the rare Masan Holi played with ash at the cremation ghats.
On Kartik Purnima, the ghats of Varanasi are lit with thousands of earthen diyas for Dev Deepawali, the "Diwali of the Gods". It is a masterclass in night and low-light photography, with boats, reflections and aarti crowds.
Pushkar, on the edge of the Thar desert, comes alive during its camel fair. Expect traders, camels, pilgrims at the sacred lake, sadhus and golden desert light, ideal for portraits and environmental storytelling.
Bengal's festivals combine deep devotion with extraordinary craft. These tours cover both Kolkata's grand celebrations and the raw rituals of the villages.
Gajon is one of the most intense folk festivals in India, held at the end of the Bengali year in honour of Shiva. Devotees perform ascetic rituals, processions and night-long performances in village settings.
During Durga Puja, Kolkata turns into an open-air art gallery. You photograph idol makers at Kumartuli, themed pandals, dhunuchi dance, Sindoor Khela and immersion, then head into rural Bengal for village pujas.
South India's ritual traditions are among the most visually dramatic in the world, and among the most demanding to photograph in low light and dense crowds.
In North Kerala, Theyyam performers become living gods through elaborate make-up, towering headdresses and fire rituals. The tour adds organised sessions of Kathakali and the martial art Kalaripayattu.
At Kulasekarapatnam, thousands of devotees dress as gods, demons and animals during the ten-day Dasara festival at the Mutharamman Temple. A festival of masks, costumes and trance, perfect for street portraits and behind-the-scenes village stories.
Arun is based in Pune, and Maharashtra's festivals are his home ground. These short, high-impact cultural photography tours in India are ideal as a first tour or an add-on.
"Sonyachi Jejuri" (Golden Jejuri) is the home of Lord Khandoba. During the Bhandara festival, clouds of turmeric turn the temple steps, devotees and sky gold. Arun's Jejuri story was published in DODHO Magazine and won the HPA Performance Award.
The Shri Vittal Birdev Yatra at Pattankodoli is another turmeric festival, rooted in rural shepherd traditions. The tour adds Kolhapur's traditional kushti akharas, where pehlwan wrestlers train in red earth.
Every year, lakhs of Warkaris walk barefoot from Alandi and Dehu to Pandharpur, carrying the palkhis of saints Dnyaneshwar and Tukaram. It is one of India's great living pilgrimages and a rich subject for documentary photography.
On the final day of Ganesh Chaturthi, Mumbai's streets and beaches fill with processions, drums and giant idols heading for immersion. Best for crowds, street photography and emotional moments.
For photographers who want landscapes, architecture and rural life alongside culture, these travel photography tours in India cover the Himalaya and the desert.
High passes, turquoise lakes, ancient monasteries and monastic festivals make Ladakh a once-in-a-lifetime journey. The itinerary balances landscape sessions at golden hour with portraits of monks and village life.
This tour moves through deserts, ruins, chilli fields, blue streets, step-wells and rural villages. It is ideal for architecture, colour and environmental portraits in warm desert light.
Looking beyond India? ASP also runs tours to Myanmar, Indonesia, Vietnam, Bangladesh and Ethiopia. See International Photo Tours or Upcoming Photo Tours.
Most Indian festivals follow the lunar calendar, so exact dates shift each year. Use this as a planning guide and confirm dates on Upcoming Photo Tours.
| Usual month | Festival / tour | Region |
|---|---|---|
| February | Shreenath Veer Mhaskoba Yatra | Near Pune, Maharashtra |
| March | Holi: Mathura, Barsana, Nandgaon; Masan Holi | Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan |
| March | Royal Rajasthan – Desert Odyssey | Rajasthan |
| April | Gajon Festival | Rural Bengal |
| June–July | Ashadi Wari Palkhi | Maharashtra |
| June–August | Leh Ladakh | Ladakh |
| August–September | Ganpati Visarjan | Mumbai |
| September–October | Kulasai Dasara | Tamil Nadu |
| September–October | Kolkata Durga Puja & Rural Bengal | West Bengal |
| October | Pattankodoli Festival | Kolhapur, Maharashtra |
| October–December | Theyyam, Kathakali & Kalaripayattu | Kannur, Kerala |
| November | Pushkar Camel Fair | Rajasthan |
| November | Dev Deepawali | Varanasi |
| November–December | Jejuri Bhandara Festival | Maharashtra |
| Year-round | Varanasi, Mumbai, private tours | Various |
Every ASP tour works as a hands-on photography workshop in India. You learn in the field, then review and edit the same day.
The story and history of the festival, gear lists and camera settings for each day.
Where to stand, how to read light, composition and approaching people respectfully.
Essential for Theyyam, Dev Deepawali and Durga Puja nights.
Lightroom and Photoshop sessions on that day's images.
Honest feedback on your best frames and how to build a story or portfolio.
ASP photography tours in India are planned so you can focus only on making pictures.
Choose your tour from the table above or ask for a private itinerary.
Reserve your seat with an advance; groups are usually limited to about 10 photographers.
Join the pre-tour briefing online to prepare your gear and understand the story.
Shoot with your mentor on a schedule built around rituals and light.
Edit and review in daily sessions and a final review.
Usually included: hand-picked stays, local transport, guided access to locations, festival-specific gear advice (such as rain covers for Holi) and full mentoring. Exact inclusions, costs and terms are listed on each tour page.
See what past groups experienced in Previous Events and Previous Tour Highlights.
Every tour is led by Arun Saha, a Pune-based photographer with 30 years of experience and winner of the 8th National Photography Award from the Government of India. A former Indian Air Force technical photographer, he guides each group with patience, deep local knowledge and a storyteller's eye.
More About ArunSee confirmed dates and seats, or ask for a private tour planned around you.
Upcoming Photo Tours Plan a Private Tour