Thai Pongal 2027 is on Friday, 15 January, the first day of the Tamil month Thai. The four-day festival begins with Bhogi on Thursday 14 January; Mattu Pongal is on Saturday 16 January and Kaanum Pongal on Sunday 17 January. The Sun enters Makara at 9:14 PM on 14 January (Drik Panchang), after sunset in Chennai, so Thai 1 is 15 January. Drik Panchang and Prokerala give no separate Pongal muhurat; by tradition the pongal is cooked on the morning of Thai 1, in the courtyard, in the sun.
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At a glance
- Bhogi
- Thursday, 14 January 2027 (Margazhi 30)
- Thai Pongal
- Friday, 15 January 2027 (Thai 1)
- Mattu Pongal
- Saturday, 16 January 2027
- Kaanum Pongal
- Sunday, 17 January 2027
- Makara Sankranti moment
- 14 January, 9:16 PM (Drik Panchang: 9:14 PM)
- Muhurat
- Drik Panchang gives no separate muhurat; by tradition in the morning
- Where
- Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Tamils around the world
- Dishes
- Sakkarai pongal (with jaggery) and ven pongal
How the Pongal 2027 dates are fixed
The Tamil calendar is solar: each month begins with the Sankranti at which the Sun enters the next sign, and Thai with the Makara Sankranti. By the rule of Drik Panchang’s Tamil calendar, if the Sankranti falls before sunset the month’s first day is that day; if after, the next day. In 2027 the Makara Sankranti is at 9:14 PM on 14 January, after sunset in Chennai (6:01 PM); so Thai 1, Thai Pongal, is Friday 15 January. Drik’s Tamil calendar for January 2027 (Chennai) gives Bhogi on 14, Pongal on 15 and Mattu Pongal on 16 January, and Prokerala gives all four days from 14 to 17 January. The Tamil Nadu government’s 2027 holiday list is not out yet; confirm office holidays from it.
Four days, four customs
These customs follow the books cited in Wikipedia’s “Pongal (festival)” article, and are folk tradition; they vary between families and districts. Tamils in cities and abroad often keep only one or two days.
Bhogi (14 January)
The last day of Margazhi. Homes are cleaned and decorated; old, useless things are gathered and burnt in a bonfire, and new things are welcomed. In many places Indra is prayed to for rain.
Thai Pongal (15 January)
The main day, of the Sun god. A new clay pot, with a turmeric plant or a garland tied round its neck, is set in the sun with sugarcane, and pongal of new rice, milk and jaggery is cooked in it. When the milk boils over, people blow a conch or call “Pongalo Pongal”. The pongal is offered first to the Sun and to Ganesha, then shared.
Mattu Pongal (16 January)
The day of the cattle. They are bathed, their horns polished and painted, garlanded and taken in procession; many people feed them sweets and bow to them. On this day women and girls keep “kanu pidi”, setting out pongal and food on a turmeric leaf outside the house for birds (especially crows) and praying for their brothers’ well-being. In some districts of Tamil Nadu jallikattu (bull-taming) is held in these days, under the state’s law and with the district administration’s permission.
Kaanum Pongal (17 January)
The close of the festival. Families meet, the young seek the blessings of elders and elders give gifts to children; people go on outings and visit relatives.
Kolam
In the Pongal days a kolam is drawn with rice flour in front of the house: geometric patterns of lines, curves and loops around a grid of dots. On Thai Pongal the kolam often shows the pongal pot, sugarcane and the sun (custom).
Pongal in history
According to Wikipedia, citing Kasturi and Madhavan’s “South India Heritage”, an inscription of the Chola king Kulottunga I (1070–1122 CE) at the Veeraraghava Swamy temple records a grant of land for the annual Pongal festivities, and the ninth-century Shaiva devotional text “Tiruvempavai” of Manikkavacakar also describes the festival. According to Andrea Gutiérrez (2018), temple inscriptions of the Chola and Vijayanagara periods give recipes resembling today’s pongal.
Makar Sankranti, Pongal and Sankranti: the same day
Thai Pongal is the day North India keeps as Makar Sankranti, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana as Sankranti (Pedda Panduga), and Kerala as Makaravilakku. In North India the punya kaal of the Sankranti is also on 15 January; the times by city are on the Makar Sankranti page.
How to perform the puja
- Step 1
Cleaning on Bhogi
Clean the house, clear out old useless things and draw a kolam in the courtyard or at the door (custom). Do not burn plastic or tyres in the bonfire; the smoke harms health.
- Step 2
Decorate the pot
Tie a turmeric plant or a turmeric root and flowers round the neck of a new clay or brass pot; keep sugarcane beside it.
- Step 3
Cook the pongal
On the morning of Thai 1, in the sun, cook new rice in milk and add jaggery, ghee, cardamom and cashews. When the milk boils over, call “Pongalo Pongal”.
- Step 4
Offer to the Sun
Place the pongal, sugarcane, bananas and coconut on a banana leaf and offer them to the Sun, then share with family and neighbours.
- Step 5
Mattu Pongal
The next day bathe and decorate the cattle and feed them pongal.
Frequently asked questions
When is Pongal 2027?
Thai Pongal is on Friday, 15 January. The four days: Bhogi 14 January (Thursday), Thai Pongal 15 (Friday), Mattu Pongal 16 (Saturday) and Kaanum Pongal 17 January (Sunday).
What is the Pongal 2027 muhurat?
Drik Panchang and Prokerala give no separate muhurat for cooking the pongal; Drik gives only the Sankranti moment: 9:14 PM on 14 January. By tradition the pongal is cooked on the morning of Thai 1 (15 January), in the sun after sunrise. Also follow your temple’s or family’s custom.
When is Bhogi 2027?
Thursday 14 January, the last day of the Tamil month Margazhi (Drik Panchang, Chennai). In Andhra Pradesh and Telangana too the day before Sankranti is Bhogi.
When are Mattu Pongal and Kaanum Pongal?
Mattu Pongal on Saturday 16 January (Drik Panchang) and Kaanum Pongal on Sunday 17 January (Prokerala; the fourth day).
Why is Pongal on 15 January and not 14?
Thai Pongal is the first day of the month Thai. The Makara Sankranti is at 9:14 PM on 14 January, after sunset in Chennai, so in the Tamil calendar Thai 1 is the next day, 15 January. In a year when the Sankranti falls in the daytime, Pongal is on 14 January.
What does the word Pongal mean?
In Tamil “pongal” means to boil over; the dish of the same name, of new rice, milk and jaggery, is cooked on this day.
What dish is made on Pongal?
Sakkarai pongal (sweet, with jaggery, ghee, cardamom and cashews) and ven pongal (savoury, with pepper and cumin). On Thai Pongal the sweet pongal is offered to the Sun.
Sources
- Drik Panchang: Thai Pongal 2027 (Friday 15 January; “Thai Pongal Sankranti Moment” 09:14 PM on 14 January, New Delhi), from search results, 18 October 2026
- Drik Panchang: Tamil calendar January 2027, Chennai (Bhogi Pandigai 14, Makara Sankranti and Pongal 15, Mattu Pongal 16 January; Thai 1 = 15 January), read 18 October 2026
- Prokerala, Pongal: in 2027 Bhogi 14, Surya Pongal 15, Mattu Pongal 16 and Kaanum Pongal 17 January; no separate muhurat
- Wikipedia, Pongal (festival): the four days, the pot and “Pongalo Pongal”, kolam, kanu pidi, jallikattu; Kulottunga I’s inscription and Tiruvempavai (Kasturi and Madhavan, South India Heritage); Andrea Gutiérrez (2018)
- SanatanBodh Tamil calendar (lib/solar-calendar.ts): Thai 1 = 15 January 2027, checked month by month against Drik’s Tamil calendar
- Customs and dishes: folk tradition
- Sankranti moment, punya kaal and sunset: SanatanBodh panchang calculation (astronomy-engine, Lahiri ayanamsha), checked against Drik Panchang’s Makar Sankranti 2027 pages (New Delhi and six more places), its Thai Pongal 2027 page and its Tamil, Bengali and Malayalam calendars for January 2027 (9 and 18 October 2026)
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