Makar Sankranti is celebrated all across India on January 14th and 15th every year. It is the time when the Sun transitions into the zodiac of Capricorn. Some people say that it signals the end of winter. Growing up, I don’t remember Sankranti being celebrated in any special manner in my own home. But then my stay in various parts of India have changed what the festival symbolizes to me:
Kites
Image courtesy: Indiatimes.com
I noticed the huge buzz around this festival when I first went to live in Ahmedabad. You have to see the energy and joy that is in the air around the time of Uttarayan as it is called in Gujarat. The most significant feature of celebration being kites. The sky is filled with kites of myriad hues on Sankranti day with entire families crowding on roof tops. The women armed with manjha rolls (sharp thread that propels the kite) and the men lustily cheering and competing in kite competitions. It is a joy to behold.
Food
Pic courtesy: Tarladalal.com
No Indian festival is complete without celebratory feast. We just love our food. In Gujarat, during Uttarayan, undhiyo is a specialty dish prepared. It is an elaborate dish cooked with a lot of winter produce. It is rustic and delicious and very time consuming to cook. Of course, the omnipresent jalebis and gathia are not far behind. If you are lucky, you can wring an invite from a Gujarati family and enjoy the goodies without slogging over the stove.
Pongal – sweet and spicy
When I came to live in Bangalore, I got exposed to another way of celebrating Sankranti or Pongal as it is called here. Here, Pongal is a harvest festival. It marks the end of winter and the advent of spring. The fields are in full bloom and essentially Pongal celebrates good harvest. Here in Karnataka, people celebrate the festival with fanfare. The houses are cleaned well to get rid of annoying bugs. Cattle are given a bath and decorated especially in farming communities. New clothes are worn. And yummy delicacies like coconut laddoos, sweet and spicy Pongal are prepared. Pongal is very similar to the khichdi I make at home only it has a generous dose of black pepper, ginger and ghee. It is so yummy that I have adopted it wholeheartedly for breakfast.
Yellu bella
Image courtesy: en.wikipedia.org
It is also the time when people exchange yellu bella or a mixture of sesame seeds and jaggery signifying sweet beginnings. The same tradition is followed in Maharashtra where it is called til gul. A visit to the temple is also on the cards on this day. The markets are flooded with sugarcane both for decoration and consumption. And the rangolis done outside homes are so beautiful. We have rangoli competitions in our gated community.
Peanuts, gajak, rewri
The festival is celebrated as Lohri in Punjab with a bonfire, dancing and offering of sweet, sugar, popcorn and rice to the fire as well as to friends and relatives. And hogging on roasted peanuts, gajak and rewri.
The festival is celebrated with gusto in Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Assam and Andhra Pradesh as well.
No matter how you celebrate, remember to spend the day with friends, family and good food. This morning I made some avarekai dosa for breakfast.
Do share how you celebrate Sankranti at home?
Pinnable pic courtesy Shutterstock
The sheer joy of watching a sea of flying Kites in the Ahmedabad sky gives an altogether different feel of Makar Sankranti 🙂
For me this festival spells indulging in loads of good food with sesame seeds being the chief attraction. I’ve never been a kite flyer, but when it comes to cheering, I don’t shy away from screaming and having lots of fun at the terrace 🙂
You rightly said that irrespective of how we celebrate it, doing it with friends, family and tasty food is the key.
Sending festive greetings your way 🙂
Same here about the cheering bit. 🙂 Thanks so much and wish you great happiness on Sankranti.
That was a kaleidoscope of Makar Sankranti well captured! Having lived across different states it was like traversing back in time! Best wishes Rachna on the occasion!
Thanks, Rahul. Glad you enjoyed the post. Wish you and your family the same.
When I was growing up, my mother used to do a small puja at home on Makar Sankranti day, and then make donations of rice and dal (khichdi ingredients) to some needy people in the area. That’s all I remember. But now that I live in south, I see quite a festive Pongal mood for 3 days. Beautiful kolams, and even a kolam competition on the beach road in town. My own celebrations are of a different nature, but I do cook Pongal style khichdi often on at least one of the Pongal days.
Happy Makar Sankranti!
Yes, the celebrations are so varied and colourful in the South. The rangolis, oh yes, such beautiful ones are made. Hope you had a good Pongal, Beloo.
Lovely roundup Rachna! Having lived in different states I’ve enjoyed being part of the local traditions. It really enriches our lives. Happy Sankranti to you! ❤️
Thanks, Vidya. Hope you had a good Sankranti.
Definitely lohri is the festival when we all got together around a bonfire and danced and ate a lot of food. .
It is celebrated on 13th January ..I smiled when you say it is a sign that winter are coming to end .. because yesterday it snowed a lot here ☺☺☺
Yes, Lohri is 13th. 🙂 I know that is funny about winter because in the North it continues to stay very cold around this time. I guess it applies only to the South. Hope you had a good time.
For us from Kerala, the festival is about harvest and prosperity and is called Makaravillakku. Makaravilakku is a light or flame that appears thrice on the Ponnambalamedu hill, just 4 kms from the Sabarimala temple, which is in news at the moment. What I love about this festival is, it is all about growth and sharing. Loved your post, especially the pictures. I have not had any experience other than the Kerala and Delhi ones. Would love to try out the recipes. Pongal, my friend used to bring for us. Happy Makar Sankranti, Rachna! May your home be filled with enough of everything you need.
That’s lovely to know, Rekha. Thanks for sharing that tale. Oh, I love Pongal. I guess I like all forms of khichdi. 🙂 It is beautiful to live in different parts of the country and partake in the food and culture. Thanks for the lovely wishes. Wish you and all at home the same.
Lovely roundup Rachna
A Beautiful Presentation.. Happy Makara Sankranti for you and your family!
Thanks so much. Wish you the same.
We eat khichdi the entire day. The day begins with going to the temple and donating rice, dal and popcorn. I don’t know the reason behind it. My festivals are a mix of Himachali and Punjabi culture.
Yeah, khichdi in some form seems to be a part of every region’s celebration.
you have more Pongal experiences than all of us having lived across all over India 🙂 There is no particular way we celebrate now, but there is in the past…me thinking, why don’t I come up with a post? Let me try….
Yes, I think we appreciate the diversity and beauty of this country when we actually live in different regions. I have been blessed in that aspect. About the post, go for it. 🙂
Happy Makar Sankranti. An endearing post on celebration across various states in India and of course, kite flying. Had Khichdi yesterday for dinner:)
Thanks, Vishal. Me too, had khichdi/pongal for lunch. Happy Sankranti to you as well.
In UP we call it Khichdi and my Mum follows a lot of mini traditions to keep up with the festival. I am a lazy bum and this year too I did not make khichdi 😛
Yes, I too love pongal with curd:)
While growing up, in our home khichdi was made this day. People who have access also take a dip in the Ganges. Til ke laddu formed the special treat around this time and my mother made them with tip and jaggery.
In Bengal, special sweets are prepared for sankranti called pithe. They are of many form, but my mother-in-law makes pati shaapta pithe and they are delicious.
That was interesting information. Thanks for sharing, Priya.
Read this post when I was ill and smiled at all the memories you conjured up. I think the only part I have not experienced is the kite-flying. Living in various parts of India and abroad, we did get a good handle on the way the festival was celebrated elsewhere.
Oh yes, we are so much richer because of our experiences and more empathetic too, I feel.
This once the food pics did not evoke envy 🙂 Since I have celebrated Pongal at my cousin’s place 🙂
I am sure you had a great time, Suresh!
This is exactly what I love about India – one festival and tens of ways of celebrating it. And this is exactly what moving to different parts makes it worthwhile. At home we called the festival ‘khichri’. The women of the family would give away a mixture of dal and rice along with til laddoos and we’d have khichri to eat too. It was a sweet simple ceremony and I remember the flavour of the simple dish so well.
Yep, we called it Khichdi too. I love khichdi in all its forms so I am game to have it any time. 🙂 You must try Pongal too. I shared the recipe on my food blog.