Pahela Baishakh is a part and parcel of Bangle culture. It is the first day of Bengali Calendar year. The people of Bangladesh observe the day with great festivities. The Baishakhi Mela is also celebrated with great festivals and it is perhaps the largest festival of Bangle culture.
People from all walks of life celebrate the festival in joyous mood. Urban people try to keep a while away from their blind impression of western culture and tend to be a Bangle at least this day. Similarly, the people of village pass the day meeting one another, giving and receiving invitations, enjoying music etc. They also observe the day by acting local performers and doing many other festive deeds.
Usually on Pohela Boishaka, the home is thoroughly washed and cleaned; people bathe early in the morning and dress in fine clothes. They spend much of the day visiting relatives, friends, and neighbours and going to fair. Fairs are arranged in many parts of the country. Various agricultural products, traditional handicrafts, toys, cosmetics, as well as various kinds of food and sweets are sold at these fairs. The fair also provide with singers, dancers and traditional plays and songs. Horse races, bull races, bull fights, cockfights, flying pigeons, boat racing were once popular. In the rural area, generally the fair is held in the open place or on the bank of a river or a canal.
Businessmen open new books of account this very day which is known as Halkhata. The traders and the shopkeepers offer sweets to their customers. They try to complete their old dealings and open new accounts. Thus Pahela Baishakh comes every year with great joy and delight.
In Dhaka city, the Ramna Batamul is the center around which New Year celebration has spread around the city and gradually across the country. This festival contains exhibition, music, poetry, crafts, photography, theatre etc. in the urban area.
Pohela Boishakh connects all ethnic Bengalis irrespective of religious and regional differences. Generally, it is a national holiday celebrated around April 14 according to the official amended calendar designed by the Bangla Academy.