This national celebration, also called the Horse Racing Festival, takes place at the Tundikhel parade grounds, the wide green just east of old Kathmandu.

Legend says the event originated as a celebration  of a battle in which the people of Kathmandu conquered a bothersome demon.

The spirit of the demon is said to be imprisoned beneath the Tundikhel, and it is believed that the annual tramping of horses' hooves keeps the demon subdued for another year.