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Winter Hindu Festivals: Pongal / Makar Sankranti / Lohri
Hindus celebrate a host of winter festivals in mid-January. In North India, it's Lohri on the 13th. On the 14th, people observe Makarsankranti across India, Uttarayan in the West, Pongal and Tamil New Year in the South, and Magha Bihu in the East. Here's a collection of web resources on these Hindu winter harvest festivals...
Pongal: Great Indian Thanksgiving
Pongal is the great Indian harvest festival, celebrated every year in mid January to mark the reaping of crops and a special thanksgiving to God, the sun, earth and cattle.
Lohri: The Bonfire Festival
Amidst the cold weather, everything seems stagnant in northern India, until it's time for Lohri, the long-awaited bonfire festival. It's not just a break to thank God for a bountiful life on earth with rituals and revelry, but more…
Uttarayan & the Kite Festival of Gujarat
On January 14, watch the sky change colors... like a rainbow in a glittering sun after the rain and bask in the glory of Uttarayan, when the skies of Gujarat give way to colorful kites.
Kite Festival of Gujarat in Pictures
An exceedingly colorful photo gallery by Meena Kadri featuring glimpses of life around the kite festival of Gujarat during the Hindu winter festival of Uttarayan.
Thaipusam
Thaipusam is an important festival dedicated to the Lord Murugan or Kartikeya observed by the Hindus of southern India and Tamils around the world.
Make 'Til Gajak' (Sesame Candy)
A speciality of northern India, Gajak is a dry sweet, made of sesame seeds or 'til' as they are known in Hindi. It's 'til' cooked in sugar syrup and set in thin layers, that can be stored for months.
Pakka Pongal Celebration in Tamil Nadu
Jennifer Kumar describes the four day festival of Pongal in a Tamil Nadu village in the southern state of India.
Pongal Ecards
Send animated or static egreetings in English or Tamil
Pongal Recipes
How to cook sweet dishes like Sakkarai Pongal, Vermicelli Payasam, Aval Payasam, Dal Payasam, Murukku…you get it here.
Pongal Wallpaper
Beautiful wallpapers in three types of screen resolutions
Pongal Kolams
An info-filled write-up on Pongal and kolams.