Gudi Padwa
When it falls
The date shifts because it tracks the moon, not the Gregorian calendar.
Calculated for India (IST) using precise Panchang astronomy. Dates can shift by a day at locations far to the east or west.
Why Gudi Padwa matters
Gudi Padwa is the new year for Maharashtra and the Konkan coast. It falls on the first day (pratipada) of the bright fortnight (shukla paksha) of Chaitra, the first month of the Hindu lunar calendar, usually in late March or April. By then the rabi harvest is in and spring is beginning, so the day combines a fresh start with a note of thanksgiving.
The name joins two words: the gudi, the bright pole-and-cloth standard raised outside the home, and padwa, the first day of a lunar fortnight. The gudi is the centre of the festival: a bamboo staff topped with an upturned brass or silver pot (kalash), wrapped in new cloth, and dressed with neem leaves, mango leaves, a garland, and sugar crystals (gathi). It is raised high at a doorway or window and treated as a sign of welcome for the year ahead.
In the classical reckoning the day is counted among the auspicious openings of the year (muhurat), so new ventures, purchases, and beginnings are considered favourable. It also marks the spring season and recalls themes of victory and homecoming. The same date is observed as Ugadi in the Telugu- and Kannada-speaking south, and it opens Chaitra Navratri across much of north India.
Rituals & observance
Observance centres on raising the gudi around sunrise and a simple home puja, followed by a festive new-year meal. The most common practices are:
- Clean the home the day before and decorate the threshold with a rangoli; many families hang fresh mango and neem leaves (toran) over the door.
- Raise the gudi early, around sunrise: a bamboo pole dressed in new cloth, topped with an inverted brass or silver pot, and tied with neem leaves, a flower garland, and sugar crystals (gathi), set where it is visible from the street.
- Offer a short puja to the gudi and the household deities with haldi-kumkum, flowers, and incense.
- Eat a small portion of neem, often neem leaves with jaggery, as a customary first taste of the year — a reminder to accept both the bitter and the sweet in the months ahead.
- Prepare the new-year meal: shrikhand with puri, puran poli, and sweets shared with family and neighbours.
- Lower the gudi respectfully before dusk after a final prayer; the day is also treated as a muhurat window to begin new work, buy gold, or start a venture.
Regional variations
How this date is determined
Observed on the Pratipada tithi of Chaitra (Shukla paksha), reckoned by sunrise (udaya tithi). Should the tithi fall across two days, tradition keeps the earlier day (purva-viddha).
Dates are computed to astronomical precision (NASA/JPL ephemeris), in line with traditional panchang.
