Winter Festivals of India
This January harvest festival in Punjab is celebrated with bonfires, rewri, and gajak, marking the end of winter.
What is Lohri?
This iconic dish features baked wheat dumplings served with lentils and churma.
What is Dal Baati Churma?
This staple grain forms the base of most Assamese meals and is often eaten in different forms during Bihu.
What is rice?
In Spain and many Latin American countries, children receive gifts on this holiday, celebrated on January 6th, which honors the visit of the Magi to baby Jesus.
What is Three Kings’ Day / Día de los Reyes Magos?
This Indian state is known as the “Land of the Rising Sun” and borders Myanmar.
What is Arunachal Pradesh?
This Assamese winter festival marks the end of the harvesting season and includes community feasts called bhogali.
What is Magh Bihu (or Bhogali Bihu)?
This red mutton curry from Jodhpur is famously spicy and made with Mathania chilies.
What is Laal Maas?
This fermented food item, made from mustard and other vegetables, is a signature of Assamese cuisine and known for its tangy flavor.
What is kharoli or pickles?
This Jewish festival of lights is celebrated for eight nights and commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple.
What is Hanukkah?
This desert state is India’s largest by area.
What is Rajasthan?
In Tamil Nadu, this four-day winter festival includes Mattu Pongal, a day dedicated specifically to cattle.
What is Pongal?
This Rajasthani dish features gram-flour dumplings that are sun-dried, stored for months, and later cooked with onions and spices - making it perfect for desert climates with limited fresh vegetables.
What is Ker Sangri?
This alkaline ingredient, made from burning banana peels or plantain stems, is unique to Assamese cooking.
What is khar?
This Japanese New Year celebration involves visiting shrines at midnight, a practice called hatsumōde.
What is Oshōgatsu?
This state is home to the backwaters of Alleppey and is often called “God’s Own Country."
What is Kerala?
This winter festival in Gujarat features sky-filled kites.
What is Uttarayan?
This dish, made from curd and gram flour steamed and then fried, is often served in yogurt gravy and is a cousin of dhokla.
What is Gatte ki Sabzi?
This classic Assamese sour curry is made with tomatoes, elephant apple, or lime, and the name of the dish literally means ‘sour’ in Assamese.
What is tenga? / What is masor tenga?
This African diaspora holiday, created in 1966, celebrates seven principles including unity and self-determination.
What is Kwanzaa?
This northeastern state is famous for living root bridges and receives some of the highest rainfall in the world.
What is Meghalaya?
This Himalayan region celebrates Losar, a winter New Year festival influenced by Tibetan Buddhism.
What is Ladakh (or Himachal’s Spiti/Lahaul accepted)?
This dessert, associated with Bikaner, is made by deep-frying fermented dough and soaking it in sugar syrup, sometimes flavored with saffron.
What is Ghewar?
This traditional rice beer, consumed during festivals, especially Bihu, is prepared by many tribal communities in Assam.
What is lau-pani / apong?
This South American country celebrates Christmas with elaborate nativity scenes called ‘pesebres,’ often displayed in public squares and homes throughout December.
What is Peru?
This union territory was reorganized in 2019 when Article 370 was revoked and split into two separate UTs.
What is Jammu & Kashmir (and Ladakh)?