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Festival Profile

Ugadi

Telugu and Kannada New Year, marked by the festive bevu-bella and new beginnings.

All festivals

Ugadi is the Telugu and Kannada New Year, a festival of new beginnings, joy and the special festive dish of bitter neem and sweet jaggery (Bevu-Bella).

Stories behind the festival

The new-year almanac

On Ugadi, families begin the new year by reading the panchangam, which predicts the year ahead, and by tasting Bevu-Bella to accept both the bitter and the sweet of life with equanimity.
South Indian regional tradition

Why we celebrate

Ugadi is the Telugu and Kannada New Year, a festival of new beginnings, joy and the special festive dish of bitter neem and sweet jaggery (Bevu-Bella).
South Indian lunisolar tradition

When

Ugadi falls on the first day of the bright fortnight of Chaitra (March-April), the first month of the Hindu lunisolar calendar.

Since when it is followed

Ugadi has been celebrated as the new year in the Deccan for centuries, tied to the lunisolar calendar.
Deccan regional tradition

Who celebrates / for whom

Celebrated by Telugu and Kannada communities in South India and worldwide.

Origin

The origin is the start of the new lunisolar year, associated with Lord Brahma's creation of the universe on this day, and the arrival of spring.
Regional tradition; lunisolar new year

Key deities

Lord Brahma, and Lord Ganesha and the Navagrahas are honoured in the new-year rituals.

How to celebrate

Take an oil bath, perform the new-year puja, read the new panchangam (almanac), and eat Bevu-Bella (neem and jaggery) symbolising the sweet and bitter of life.

Rituals & offerings

Panchangam reading, Bevu-Bella, oil bath, and decoration of the home with mango leaves.

Key facts

Ugadi is celebrated as Gudi Padwa in Maharashtra on the same day.
Regional tradition