Next: 15 to 18 Jan 2027
Pongal
White rice-flour kolam on the doorstep, yellow turmeric plants tied to the pot, and cattle with freshly painted horns.
The colours of Pongal
Pongal is the Tamil harvest thanksgiving to the sun. Each morning the ground before the door is washed and drawn with kolam, patterns made by letting white rice flour run through the fingers; for the festival they are filled with coloured powders. The new clay pot in which the first rice is boiled is tied with a fresh turmeric plant, green leaves and yellow root together, because turmeric is held to be auspicious. Tall purple-green sugarcane stands by the door. On the third day, Mattu Pongal, cattle are washed, garlanded, and their horns painted in blue, red, yellow and green. People wear new clothes, often silk saris and white veshtis with a coloured border.
#F5F1E6Kolam whiteRice flour patterns drawn at the threshold.#E3A81CTurmeric yellowThe auspicious plant tied round the pot.#5E8C3ASugarcane greenCane stalks stood at the door.#1F5FBFHorn bluePaint on the horns of cattle on Mattu Pongal.Values are fair approximations, not official shades.
Read about the colours
Written by the Rang desk with AI assistance. Background: "Pongal (festival)" on Wikipedia. Customs differ from family to family and place to place. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.