Pokémon GO Festival of Lights Timed Research: Saree or Kurta Pikachu

Pokémon GO Festival of Lights Timed Research is a branched research opportunity for Trainers in India that becomes available on November 1 at 6:00 a.m., five days before the main Festival of Lights weekend starts.

The key confirmed mechanic is the path reward: your branch determines whether the collectible encounter is Saree Pikachu or Kurta Pikachu, and that Pikachu carries a Special Background. The exact individual tasks are not public yet, so this page separates confirmed rewards from details that still need live data.

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When Pokémon GO Festival of Lights Timed Research starts

Pokémon GO Festival of Lights Timed Research Image Pokémon GO.

Pokémon GO Festival of Lights Timed Research becomes available Sunday, November 1 at 6:00 a.m. local time in India. The main event runs November 6 to November 8.

Opening the research early gives players time to read the branch choice rather than deciding in the middle of a five-minute Sparkle O’Clock burst. Trainers outside India should not assume the research will appear on their accounts.

Saree Pikachu or Kurta Pikachu path

Pokémon GO confirms that Pokémon GO Festival of Lights Timed Research is branched. Rewards include XP, Stardust, costume stickers and one Special Background Pikachu encounter selected by the branch.

Both costumes are Shiny eligible. The announcement does not promise a guaranteed Shiny or publish boosted odds for the research reward, so the guaranteed feature is the Special Background.

Are the Festival of Lights research tasks known yet?

No complete task list has been published for Pokémon GO Festival of Lights Timed Research. The official post names the reward categories and branching outcome but does not give step-by-step requirements.

Once APAC live data exposes the branches, the correct move is to add those exact tasks to this URL. Creating a second research page before then would fragment the same search intent and risk conflicting answers.

Which path should you choose?

Before the live task differences are known, the only confirmed decision criterion in Pokémon GO Festival of Lights Timed Research is the costume reward. Choose Saree if you want the saree Special Background, or Kurta if you prefer that version.

If the live branches later use different tasks, quantities or extra encounters, those differences can change the comparison. Until then there is no factual basis for declaring one branch better.

How the research fits the wider event

The research is not the only source of the costume Pokémon. Both appear in raids and both can appear during Sparkle O’Clock with a chance of a Special Background. That gives Pokémon GO Festival of Lights Timed Research a controlled collection role while raids and wild bursts provide repeatable checks.

Collection Challenges, Lure bonuses and scheduled spawns run alongside the November 6 to 8 event, so choosing one path does not mean the other costume becomes unobtainable.

How to make the right Pokémon GO Festival of Lights Timed Research choice

The Saree branch gives a Pikachu wearing a saree with a Special Background; the Kurta branch gives the corresponding Kurta costume with a Special Background. Those are the confirmed differences that matter to collectors. Neither choice prevents you from encountering both costumes in raids and the evening Sparkle O’Clock wild spawns during the November 6–8 festival.

Niantic also lists XP, Stardust and costume-themed stickers among the rewards. Both costume Pikachu are Shiny eligible, but a Shiny research encounter is not guaranteed. Choose the outfit you most want to collect with the event background instead of relying on an advertised Shiny bonus.

When the research appears and what deadline to check

Pokémon GO Festival of Lights Timed Research begins November 1 at 6:00 a.m. IST for eligible Trainers in India, equivalent to 12:30 a.m. GMT. The weekend event itself begins November 6 at 10:00 a.m. IST and ends November 8 at 8:00 p.m. IST.

The event announcement does not provide its exact research task list or a separate expiry hour. Timed Research can disappear when its timer ends, so check the deadline inside your Research tab and claim your completed rewards before it expires. Do not confuse the main festival’s November 8 closing time with a confirmed research claim deadline.

How the two research paths fit raids and wild encounters

During the main festival, both Saree Pikachu and Kurta Pikachu appear in raids. Either can be Shiny or have a Special Background if you are lucky. They also appear in the wild during Sparkle O’Clock at 6:00, 6:30, 7:00 and 7:30 p.m. IST, each for five minutes. These methods can help you collect the costume that you did not choose in research.

This research is region-locked to the India celebration. Players elsewhere should not expect it to appear locally just because they can read the event notice. Our costume guides explain the encounter methods, while our Special Background guide separates the promised research reward from the chance-based raid and wild outcomes.

Official source: Pokémon GO Festival of Lights 2026 event announcement.