Overview
- Drik Panchang confirms the main day on Wednesday, January 14, with the Thai Pongal Sankranti moment at 3:13 PM IST.
- The four-day observance is marked as Bhogi, Thai (Surya) Pongal, Mattu Pongal, and Kaanum Pongal, each with distinct customs from cleansing to social visits.
- The central rite involves cooking new rice with milk and jaggery outdoors in a clay pot, celebrating the overflow with the chant “Pongalo Pongal.”
- The festival coincides with other mid-January harvest celebrations such as Makar Sankranti and Magh Bihu and marks the start of the Tamil month Thai as the Sun enters Makara.
- Traditional foods highlighted this year include sakkarai and ven pongal, vadai, payasam, and kootu, with celebrations noted across Tamil Nadu and the Tamil diaspora.