Calendars
Hindu calendar and regional calendars of India
India keeps more than one calendar. Here are nine of them, each with a month grid that gives the tithi and nakshatra at sunrise, the regional month and day, and the festivals of this year and next.
What each one does
- Hindu calendarThe North Indian Hindu calendar with purnimanta months and the Vikram Samvat year.
- Tamil calendarThe Tamil solar calendar, with months from Chithirai to Panguni and the Tamil festivals.
- Telugu calendarThe Telugu calendar with amanta months, Ugadi and the Telugu festivals.
- Kannada calendarThe Kannada calendar with amanta months, Ugadi and the festivals of Karnataka.
- Malayalam calendarThe Malayalam solar calendar of Kerala, from Chingam to Karkidakam, with the Kollam era year.
- Marathi calendarThe Marathi calendar with amanta months, Gudi Padwa and the Shaka year used in Maharashtra.
- Gujarati calendarThe Gujarati calendar with amanta months and the Vikram Samvat year that starts the day after Diwali.
- Bengali calendarThe Bengali solar calendar, from Boishakh to Choitro, with the Bangabda year.
- Odia calendarThe Odia solar calendar of Odisha, with its months and festivals.
Which calendar to open
Open the calendar your family follows. If you are in North or Central India and are not sure, the Hindu calendar is the usual one; Maharashtra uses the Marathi calendar, where the month changes at Amavasya rather than Purnima. In the south and east, the Tamil, Malayalam, Bengali and Odia calendars count months by the Sun, so their month starts are tied to a Sankranti, not to the Moon.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between amanta and purnimanta?
In an amanta calendar a lunar month ends on Amavasya, and in a purnimanta calendar it ends on Purnima. The festival falls on the same day either way, but in the dark half of the month the two give it a different month name.
Why do the Tamil and Bengali months start on different days?
Solar calendars start a month when the Sun enters a new sign, but each region has its own rule for which day counts when that moment falls late in the day. The pages follow the rule of each region.
Which city are the calendar dates worked out for?
The Hindu calendar uses Nagpur, and each regional calendar uses a main city of its region for sunrise, such as Chennai for the Tamil calendar and Kolkata for the Bengali one. A tithi at sunrise can differ by a day in another part of India.
Is there a Hindi version of these calendars?
Yes. Every calendar has year and month pages in English and Hindi for this year and next.