Puthandu, or Varusha Pirappu, is the first day of Chithirai and of the Tamil year, when the Sun enters Mesha (Aries). The night before, a tray is arranged with fruit, flowers, betel, gold, coins and a mirror, and it is the first thing each person looks at on waking. The year takes a new name from the cycle of sixty, the almanac is read, and the meal carries every taste.
The story
The Tamil year is solar: it begins when the Sun returns to the first sign of the zodiac, and each of its twelve months is one sign long. The same day is the new year in Kerala, Punjab, Bengal, Assam, Odisha and across South-East Asia.
In Madurai the month of Chithirai opens the greatest festival of the Tamil country: the wedding of Meenakshi to Sundareswarar, and the journey of Vishnu as Kallazhagar, who rides to the Vaigai river to give his sister away and arrives too late.
இனிய தமிழ்ப் புத்தாண்டு நல்வாழ்த்துகள்
Warm good wishes for the Tamil New Year
The greeting of the day
How the day goes
- KanniThe tray seen at dawn: mango, banana and jackfruit, betel and areca, flowers, jewellery, money, rice and a mirror.
- Maanga pachadiRaw mango, jaggery, neem flowers, chilli, tamarind and salt in one dish: sweet, sour, bitter, hot, astringent and salt together.
- Panchangam readingThe new almanac is read aloud at home or at the temple.
- Kolam and new clothesThe threshold is decorated and mango leaves are hung over the door.
- The feastA full meal on a banana leaf, with vadai, payasam and the pachadi.
Why this date
Puthandu is the first day of the solar month of Chithirai. The month begins on the day the Sun enters Mesha, if that happens before sunset; otherwise on the next day. It falls on 14 April in most years.
Puthandu in other years
| Year | Date | Day |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Monday | |
| 2026 | Tuesday | |
| 2027 | Wednesday | |
| 2028 | Friday | |
| 2029 | Saturday | |
| 2030 | Sunday |
More Tamil festivals
1 AprilPanguni Uthiramபங்குனி உத்திரம்
26 MarchRama Navamiஸ்ரீ ராம நவமி
19 AprilAkshaya Tritiyaஅட்சய திருதியை
30 MayVaikasi Visakamவைகாசி விசாகம்
15 FebruaryMaha Shivaratriமகா சிவராத்திரி
25 JulySayana Ekadasiசயன ஏகாதசி
Where to see Puthandu
In Tamil Nadu
- Meenakshi Temple, MaduraiTamil NaduThe Chithirai festival, with the divine wedding and Kallazhagar's entry into the Vaigai, fills the month.
- TiruvidaimarudurTamil NaduThe Mahalingaswamy temple draws its chariot on the new year.
- ThiruvannamalaiTamil NaduThe first Girivalam of the year follows at the Chithirai full moon, the most crowded of the twelve.
Across India
- GuruvayurKeralaThe same morning is Vishu, with the Vishukkani seen before the Lord at dawn.
- Golden Temple, AmritsarPunjabVaisakhi, the new year of Punjab and the founding day of the Khalsa.
- GuwahatiAssamRongali Bihu, seven days of song and dance for the Assamese new year.