On October 27th, I landed in New Delhi, ready to explore the incredible sights of India—and as luck would have it, a special Pokémon GO event called the Festival of Lights was happening at the same time! In this article, I’ll take you through my experience in India, along with a recap of the event and my journey to capture the elusive Shiny Saree Pikachu.
As I travelled through India, visiting places such as New Delhi, Agra, Jaipur, and Goa, I was captivated by the vibrant colours of the Diwali festival. The streets were alive with energy as lights draped across buildings, fireworks exploding in every direction, and the scent of incense in the air. Every place had its charm, and each day was filled with something new, from the historic monuments of Agra to the scenic coastlines of Goa.
Of course, one of the most unforgettable sights was the Taj Mahal—truly a marvel of architecture. If you ever have the chance, I’d recommend seeing it at least once in your life, it’s an experience like no other.
In the midst of all this, the Festival of Lights event in Pokémon GO made my journey even more thrilling. The exclusive event spawns were fantastic, with rarer Pokémon appearing thanks to Incense, and I found myself constantly checking for any wild catches that might pop up. But the real star of the event was the Saree Pikachu, a special regional variant only available in India—and I was determined to find a shiny one.
This hunt quickly turned into a full-fledged adventure of its own. I spent hours riding through city streets in tuk-tuks, chasing down Saree Pikachu raids and picking up every research task I could find. I rode past colourful market stalls, temples filled with Diwali worshippers, and families gathered to light diyas, all while trying to track down my elusive shiny. The challenge added an extra layer of excitement to my days, but despite my efforts, each encounter came up short. It felt like Saree Pikachu was just beyond my reach.
Surprisingly, finding Saree Pikachu raids wasn’t easy, as the Halloween event was happening at the same time. The overlapping raid spawns made locating Saree Pikachu incredibly challenging, and my hope of finding a Shiny was dwindling with each raid.
There were also research tasks exclusive to India for this event- “Win 1 Raid,” which could reward a Saree Pikachu encounter, but also a Halloween-costumed Gengar. As cool as Gengar is, this was not the time for me to be running into them!
Finally, on the last day of the event, when I had almost given up hope, it happened…
Just hours before the event ended, After completing some of the last few Saree Pikachu raids of the entire event, I saw the golden sparkle—it was a shiny Saree Pikachu! The rush of excitement was indescribable; after days of searching and with Diwali celebrations lighting up the streets around me, I’d caught the ultimate prize.
My time in India was an unforgettable experience, blending the vibrant culture of Diwali with the excitement of the Pokémon GO Festival of Lights event. Chasing down the Shiny Saree Pikachu while soaking in the sights and sounds of India made this trip one for the books—it was a journey that brought together the best of both worlds.
Until next time, Trainers.
–Adam ‘avrip’
