Vishu 2027: 15 April

City-wise times

The Mesha Sankranti is the same moment in every city; the sunrise of the Vishukkani dawn changes with the city. For another city, pick it in the box above.

At a glance

Date

Thursday, 15 April 2027

Malayalam date

Medam 1, Kollavarsham 1202

Mesha Sankranti

14 April, 3:34 PM (Drik Panchang: 3:33 PM)

Vishukkani

Dawn on 15 April; sunrise in Thiruvananthapuram 6:13 AM

Where

Kerala and Mahe; Malayalis in India and abroad

Main customs

Vishukkani, Vishukkaineetam, Vishu sadya, firecrackers (tradition)

Flower

Kani konna (Indian laburnum, Cassia fistula)

Around the same time

Puthandu (Tamil, 14 April), Baisakhi (14 April), Pohela Boishakh (Bengal, 15 April)

Same day

Ram Navami (15 April 2027)

Why Vishu is on 15 April, not 14

The Malayalam calendar is solar: each month begins with the Sankranti when the Sun enters the next sign, and Medam (Mesha) with the Mesha Sankranti. Matching it with Drik Panchang’s calendar for Thiruvananthapuram, we found Kerala’s rule to be this: if the Sankranti falls between sunrise and three-fifths of the daytime, the month begins that day; if later, the next day. All 25 month starts of 2026-27 agree with Drik by this rule. In 2027 the Mesha Sankranti is at 3:33 PM on 14 April (Drik), while the limit in Thiruvananthapuram that day is 1:37 PM, so Medam 1 is 15 April. The Vishukkani is seen on the first dawn after the Sankranti, which is also 15 April. In 2026 the Sankranti was at 9:39 AM on 14 April, after sunrise; Kerala’s holiday list still had Vishu on 15 April (Onmanorama). In both years Vishu is the day of the first sunrise after the Sankranti.

Vishukkani: the first sight of the year

Vishukkani means “that which is seen first”. According to Kerala Tourism it is an arrangement of auspicious things, rice, fruits, vegetables, golden cucumber (kanivellari), betel leaves, flowers, coins and a mirror, placed before an image of Lord Krishna, and seeing it first thing in the morning is believed to bring a good year. According to Wikipedia the elders of the home, usually the women, arrange it the night before in a bell-metal uruli: rice, golden lemon and cucumber, coconut, jackfruit, betel leaves and arecanut, a mirror (Aranmula kannadi), konna flowers and a nilavilakku lamp. At dawn the lamp is lit and the elders bring the others, in many homes with their eyes closed, before the kani. This is a custom, and the things vary a little from home to home.

Kaineettam, sadya and firecrackers

According to Kerala Tourism the elders give the younger ones Vishukkaineetam, a gift of money, firecrackers are burst and a Vishu sadya (feast) is made. According to Wikipedia the amount of the kaineettam often ends in 1 (11, 21, 51, 101), linked with a new beginning, and the feast has dishes such as Vishu kanji, Vishu katta, thoran, veppampoo rasam (rasam of neem flowers) and mampazha pulissery (ripe mango curry), with sweet, sour and bitter tastes together.

One Sankranti, different New Years

The Mesha Sankranti is the solar new year of several regions, but each calendar has its own rule for the day, so in 2027 they fall on two different days. In the Tamil calendar a month begins the same day if the Sankranti is before sunset: Puthandu (Chithirai 1) is on 14 April. Punjab’s Baisakhi is also on 14 April. In Kerala the limit is three-fifths of the day, so Vishu is on 15 April; in Bengal the month is counted from the day after the Sankranti, so Pohela Boishakh (Bangabda 1434) is also on 15 April. All these dates were checked against Drik Panchang’s calendars for Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram and Kolkata. The Malayalam year number (Kollavarsham) changes not at Vishu but on Chingam 1: on 18 August in 2027, when 1203 begins.

Sabarimala and the temples

According to Kerala Tourism, the Sabarimala temple opens for darshan on Vishu as well as for the first five days of every Malayalam month. Kerala’s temples hold a Vishukkani darshan at dawn on Vishu; each temple’s timing is announced by its Devaswom board.

Checked against Drik Panchang

Drik Panchang’s 2027 Sankranti list has the Mesha Sankranti at 3:33 PM on 14 April (read 30 September 2026), and its Vishu page gives the same moment (3:03 AM in Lancaster, USA time, which is 3:33 PM in India). Our calculation gives 3:33:38 PM, shown as 3:34 PM. Prokerala (Ujjain) gives the Sankranti at 3:23 PM, but it also gives Vishu on Thursday, 15 April. Drik’s Malayalam calendar for Thiruvananthapuram has Medam 1 and Vishu on 15 April (read 18 October 2026). The Kerala government’s 2027 holiday list had not been found by 18 October 2026; the 2026 list came out on 29 October 2025.

Frequently asked questions