The Medaram Jatara is a biennial tribal festival held at Medaram, a small forest hamlet in Mulugu district, Telangana, deep inside the Eturnagaram Wildlife Sanctuary. Every two years it draws crowds counted in the crore to honour the Koya goddesses Sammakka and her daughter Saralamma. For most of the year Medaram is a quiet clearing of teak forest; for four days it becomes one of the largest human gatherings on earth.
Medaram Jatara is a four-day Koya tribal festival in Mulugu district, Telangana, held once every two years to worship the goddesses Sammakka and Saralamma. Devotees bathe in the Jampanna Vagu stream and offer jaggery. The 2026 edition ran 28–31 January; the next is expected in early 2028.
Key takeaways
- Medaram sits in Tadvai mandal, Mulugu district, Telangana, inside the 812 sq km Eturnagaram Wildlife Sanctuary (declared a sanctuary on 30 January 1952, per Wikipedia citing Hyderabad-era records).
- The Jatara is biennial and four days long; it falls in the Hindu month of Magha (around February). The 2026 edition ran 28–31 January 2026, so the next full Maha Jatara is expected in early 2028.
- The 2026 gathering drew crowds in the crore: official pre-event estimates ran from about 1.5 crore to 3 crore, and Deccan Chronicle reported cumulative attendance crossing 1.6 crore.
- Devotees bathe in the Jampanna Vagu stream and offer bangaram — jaggery (bellam) weighed against their own body weight — to the goddesses.
- Reach Medaram by road from Warangal (about 95–110 km via Tadvai); the nearest railway is Warangal, and the nearest airport is Hyderabad, roughly 250 km away.
- Outside festival weeks Medaram is quiet; the best window to visit is the Jatara itself, otherwise October to March for the forest drive.
Medaram Jatara: the hamlet and the festival
Medaram is a forest hamlet in Tadvai mandal, Mulugu district, Telangana, and the Medaram Jatara is the biennial tribal fair that fills it. The settlement lies within the Eturnagaram Wildlife Sanctuary, a teak-dominated reserve in northern Telangana near the Chhattisgarh border. The Jatara honours two Koya goddesses, Sammakka and her daughter Saralamma (also spelled Sarakka), and the rituals are performed by Koya tribe priests according to Koya custom, as Wikipedia and Deccan Herald both record.
The festival is widely described in the press and by Telangana officials as India’s largest tribal fair and one of the largest religious gatherings in Asia. Those “largest” labels come from media and government statements rather than a formal ranking, so treat them as attributed claims. The scale is real: Deccan Chronicle reported that cumulative attendance at the 2026 Jatara crossed 1.6 crore, while pre-event official estimates ranged from about 1.5 crore to 3 crore people (as of January 2026).
The Telangana government recognises the event as a state festival; official and news accounts date that recognition variously to the mid-1990s (PIB-linked summaries say 1996, Deccan Herald says 1998). In September 2025 the state Chief Minister asked the Centre to grant it national-festival status, a demand still pending as of October 2026. If you are building a longer trip, our Telangana travel guide sets Medaram alongside the state’s Kakatiya temples and wildlife circuits.
The Koya legend of Sammakka and Saralamma
According to Koya tribal belief, Sammakka and Saralamma were a mother and daughter who died resisting a medieval army, and the Jatara commemorates that sacrifice. The account below is oral tradition, retold here as the community’s own history rather than as documented fact; versions differ in detail between tellers.
Oral tradition says a Koya hunting party found an infant girl glowing beside a tigress in the Dandakaranya forest and raised her as Sammakka. She married Pagididda Raju, a Koya chieftain who owed allegiance to the Kakatiya rulers of Warangal, and they had three children — Saralamma, Nagulamma and a son, Jampanna. When a long drought left the Koyas unable to pay tribute, the Kakatiya king (remembered as Pratapa Rudra) is said to have sent an army against them in the 13th century.
In the battle beside a Godavari tributary, the men of the family fell. Jampanna, mortally wounded, dropped into the stream, which the legend says ran red with his blood; it has been called Jampanna Vagu ever since. Sammakka is said to have fought on, then walked into the forest towards Chilakala Gutta hill and vanished, leaving behind a vermilion casket that her people took as her divine form. The Koya community honours the goddesses as protectors who chose death over submission — a story of resistance that gives the Jatara its emotional weight. Please treat the worship and its symbols respectfully; this is living faith, not folklore for spectacle.
Best time to visit Medaram
The single best time to visit Medaram is during the Jatara itself, because that is the only window when the temples, rituals and the whole forest clearing come alive. The Jatara is biennial and falls in the Hindu month of Magha (around February), traditionally near the full moon (Magha Pournami). The 2026 Maha Jatara ran 28–31 January 2026, so the next full edition is expected in early 2028 — confirm exact dates with Telangana Tourism closer to the time.
Outside the Jatara, Medaram is a quiet hamlet and the surrounding Eturnagaram forest is the draw. For that, the cool, dry months of October to March are most comfortable, with pleasant days and low humidity. Avoid the April–June heat and the July–September monsoon, when forest tracks turn difficult. Note that priests also announce smaller interim events: a four-day “Mini Jatara” was scheduled for 17–20 February 2027, per Deccan Chronicle (as of 2026).
| Window | Conditions | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Jatara (Magha / Feb, biennial — next c. early 2028) | Enormous crowds, full ritual calendar, heavy traffic | Experiencing the festival itself |
| October–March (non-festival) | Cool, dry, 15–30°C; forest at its best | Quiet visits, Eturnagaram drive, nearby sights |
| April–June | Hot and dry, often 40°C+ | Not recommended |
| July–September | Monsoon; streams full, tracks muddy | Waterfalls nearby; difficult forest access |
How to reach Medaram
You reach Medaram mainly by road from Warangal, roughly 95–110 km away via Tadvai, as Medaram has no railway station or airport of its own. Travel guides place the hamlet about 95 km from Warangal and around 14 km beyond Tadvai; a route calculator gives roughly 98 km driving distance (figures as of 2026, so reconfirm). The last stretch runs through the Eturnagaram Wildlife Sanctuary.
The nearest railway station is Warangal, on the busy Delhi–Chennai grand trunk route, from where road transport covers the rest. The nearest airport is Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, about 250 km from Medaram by road. During the Jatara the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation runs thousands of special buses and South Central Railway adds special trains to Warangal; outside the festival, services are limited and a hired car or local bus to Tadvai is the practical option.
| From | Approx. distance to Medaram | How |
|---|---|---|
| Tadvai | ~14 km | Taxi / auto / local bus through the forest |
| Warangal (nearest railway) | ~95–110 km | Bus or taxi via Tadvai; ~2.5–3 hours |
| Eturnagaram town | ~40 km | Road |
| Hyderabad (nearest airport) | ~250 km | Road, 5–6 hours; or train to Warangal then road |
During festival weeks, expect heavy congestion on the Warangal–Tadvai–Medaram road and park-and-walk arrangements near the shrine. The state deploys large numbers of buses specifically to move pilgrims from Warangal and other towns; in 2026 TGSRTC planned around 4,000 buses, and about 42,000 personnel across 21 departments were mobilised for the event (per Siasat, January 2026).
The four days and the Jampanna Vagu bath
The Jatara unfolds over four days, each marked by a specific ritual, and the central act for most pilgrims is a holy dip in the Jampanna Vagu stream. Day one typically marks the ceremonial arrival of Saralamma at the Medaram platform (gadde); day two brings Sammakka, carried from Chilakala Gutta hill as a vermilion casket rather than an idol; the final day sees the goddesses “return to the forest” (Vanapravesham) and the crowds disperse.
Devotees offer bangaram (literally “gold”) to the goddesses in the form of bellam (jaggery), traditionally weighed against the devotee’s own body weight, as Deccan Herald describes. Before or after darshan many bathe in the Jampanna Vagu, the stream named in the legend; the vermilion jar is also ritually washed there. There are no carved idols in a grand temple here — the worship centres on simple platforms in the forest, which is part of what makes the Jatara distinct from mainstream pilgrimages. If you attend, keep to marked bathing points, mind the current and supervise children at the water.
The Eturnagaram forest setting
Medaram lies inside the Eturnagaram Wildlife Sanctuary, a 812 sq km tropical dry-deciduous forest in Mulugu district declared a sanctuary on 30 January 1952 by the erstwhile Hyderabad government (per Wikipedia). The reserve sits near the Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh borders; the Godavari River passes through it and a perennial stream, Dayyam Vagu, cuts it roughly in two. Teak dominates the canopy, and recorded wildlife includes tiger, leopard, sloth bear, gaur and nilgai, alongside many birds.
For most of the two-year cycle this forest is the quiet reality of Medaram — birdsong, teak shade and a handful of residents. Forest officials were reported in late 2025 to be introducing eco-tourism safari services within the sanctuary for the first time; if that has started, it would be the simplest way to see the reserve. Treat any safari fees, timings and permit rules as unconfirmed and check with the Mulugu forest office before you plan, as these were not finalised in the sources available as of October 2026.
Where to stay
There is almost no formal hotel stay in Medaram itself, so most visitors base in Warangal and travel in, except during the Jatara when the administration erects large temporary facilities. Warangal, about 95–110 km away, has the fullest range of budget and mid-range hotels and is the practical base for a non-festival visit or a day trip to the forest.
During the Jatara, the Telangana government and tribal welfare department set up extensive temporary arrangements near Medaram — tented accommodation, dormitories, toilets, water points and medical camps — because permanent lodging cannot absorb crore-scale crowds. These temporary facilities are organised year to year; confirm availability and any booking channel through Telangana Tourism ahead of the event. The ₹ bands below are planning estimates only.
| Type | Where | Indicative per night |
|---|---|---|
| Budget lodges / dharamshala | Warangal; temporary dorms at Medaram during Jatara | ₹600–1,500 |
| Mid-range hotels | Warangal / Hanamkonda | ₹1,800–3,500 |
| Upper mid / best available | Warangal | ₹4,000–6,500 |
| Festival temporary camps | Near Medaram (govt-arranged) | Varies; confirm with Telangana Tourism |
Budget breakdown
A no-frills two-day trip to Medaram from Warangal can cost roughly ₹3,000–6,000 per person outside the festival, rising sharply during the Jatara when transport and stay are stretched. The table below assumes a traveller already in Warangal, using shared transport and budget-to-mid lodging; all figures are indicative planning estimates to reconfirm, not quoted fares.
| Item | Budget | Comfort |
|---|---|---|
| Warangal ⇄ Medaram transport | ₹400–800 (bus/shared) | ₹2,500–4,000 (taxi) |
| Stay (1 night) | ₹700–1,500 | ₹2,500–4,000 |
| Food (2 days) | ₹400–700 | ₹800–1,500 |
| Offerings / local costs | ₹200–500 | ₹500–1,000 |
| Approx. total | ₹1,700–3,500 | ₹6,300–10,500 |
During the Jatara, costs and crowds both climb: hired vehicles charge a premium, simple meals are served at community kitchens and stalls, and much of the “budget” comes down to patience rather than money. Local food around Medaram is plain Telangana fare — rice, jonna rotte (sorghum flatbread), pappu (lentils) and spicy pickles — with jaggery sold everywhere for offerings. Carry your own water and snacks for the forest stretch.
Etiquette, permits and crowd safety
No special entry permit is needed for Medaram or the festival itself, but the forest location and crore-scale crowds demand care and respect. The Jatara is a living Koya religious event, not a show: dress modestly, ask before photographing people or rituals, do not touch ritual objects, and keep to pilgrim pathways. Avoid treating the worship or the community as a tourist spectacle.
- Crowd safety: Stay with your group, agree a meeting point, and keep children and elderly travellers close; stampede risk rises at peak darshan hours. Follow police and volunteer directions.
- At the stream: Bathe only at marked points on the Jampanna Vagu, watch the current, and keep valuables secure.
- Forest rules: Eturnagaram is a protected sanctuary — no plastic littering, no fires, no disturbing wildlife; any safari would need forest-office permission.
- Essentials: Mobile network is patchy in the forest; carry cash as UPI and ATMs are unreliable near Medaram, plus water, sun protection and basic medicines. The nearest hospitals and full facilities are in Warangal.
- Solo and women travellers: The festival is heavily policed and family-oriented; still, travel in daylight on the forest road and prefer the regular bus services.
Nearby places
Medaram pairs well with Mulugu and Warangal district sights, so a non-festival visit can easily fill two or three days. The forest, a Kakatiya-era temple circuit and a lake resort are all within a short drive, and our Telangana travel guide stitches these into a wider route.
| Place | Approx. distance from Medaram | Why go |
|---|---|---|
| Eturnagaram Wildlife Sanctuary core | Surrounds Medaram | Teak forest, birdlife, possible new safari |
| Tadvai | ~14 km | Forest gateway, eco-tourism base |
| Laknavaram Lake | ~40–50 km | Island lake with a long suspension bridge |
| Bogatha Waterfall | ~40 km | Telangana’s tallest-known falls (monsoon best) |
| Warangal (Fort, Thousand Pillar Temple) | ~95–110 km | Kakatiya capital, UNESCO-listed Ramappa temple nearby |
Frequently asked questions
When is the next Medaram Jatara?
The next full Medaram Jatara (Maha Jatara) is expected in early 2028, because the festival is biennial and the 2026 edition was held 28–31 January 2026. It falls in the Hindu month of Magha, around February. A four-day Mini Jatara was announced for 17–20 February 2027. Confirm exact dates with Telangana Tourism before planning.
Where is Medaram located?
Medaram is a forest hamlet in Tadvai mandal, Mulugu district, in northern Telangana, India. It lies inside the Eturnagaram Wildlife Sanctuary, roughly 95–110 km from Warangal and about 250 km from Hyderabad by road. The Jatara’s rituals take place on simple platforms in the forest clearing rather than in a large built temple.
How do I reach Medaram?
Reach Medaram by road from Warangal, about 95–110 km away via Tadvai, as it has no railway or airport. The nearest railway station is Warangal and the nearest airport is Hyderabad, around 250 km away. During the Jatara, Telangana’s road transport corporation runs thousands of special buses and extra trains serve Warangal.
Why is the Medaram Jatara famous?
The Medaram Jatara is famous as India’s largest tribal festival, drawing crowds in the crore to honour the Koya goddesses Sammakka and Saralamma. Media and officials call it one of Asia’s largest tribal gatherings; Deccan Chronicle reported 2026 attendance crossing 1.6 crore. It is unusual for its tribal rituals, forest setting and legend of resistance.
What happens at the Jampanna Vagu?
Devotees take a ritual bath in the Jampanna Vagu, a forest stream named in the Sammakka–Saralamma legend after Jampanna, the goddess’s son said to have died in battle there. Pilgrims bathe at marked points as an act of purification before or after worship, and the deities’ vermilion casket is also ritually washed in the stream.
Is Medaram worth visiting outside the festival?
Yes, but for different reasons. Outside the biennial Jatara, Medaram is a quiet hamlet and the draw is the surrounding Eturnagaram Wildlife Sanctuary — teak forest, birdlife and a possible new safari. Pair it with Laknavaram Lake, Bogatha Waterfall and Warangal’s Kakatiya monuments for a calm two-to-three-day trip between October and March.
Last updated and sources
Medaram suits pilgrims and culturally curious travellers who can handle crowds during the Jatara, and quiet-forest seekers the rest of the year. Aim for the festival in Magha (next expected early 2028), or October to March otherwise.
Last updated: 23 October 2026. Fees, timings and permits change — reconfirm with official sources before you travel.
Sources: Wikipedia — Eturnagaram Wildlife Sanctuary; Wikipedia — Sammakka Saralamma Jatara; Siasat — Medaram Maha Jathara to begin on Jan 28 (2026); The Week — Sammakka-Sarakka Jatara kicks off (2026); The South First — festival report; Deccan Herald — Jathara begins; Deccan Chronicle — Mini Jatara dates (Feb 2027); Madras Courier — legend and history; Trawell — Medaram access notes. Accessed October 2026.
