Pongal

Pongal is much bigger than Diwali and is next only to Dassera. It is actually a three-day festival, with Bhogi coming on January 13, Pongal on 14 and Kanumu on 15 every year, unlike many other festivals that occur on a different day each year. Basically a festival to celebrate the harvest, it is also a day when families come together and enjoy the happiness of a good life.

On the Bhogi day, it is the occasion to take an oil bath before sunrise for the girls and women and worship the family deities, especially Sun. The family cleans up the whole house, getting rid of all the useless things by throwing them into a bonfire that is lit before sunrise. This symbolizes a new beginning by getting rid of the old. Boys beat their little drums called Bhogi Kottus. The girls draw the most colorful Kollams( Rangoli) and decorate them with dungballs called gobillu. Then they dance around the kollam with intricate steps. Sweets like laddus are made from new rice, sugarcane and jaggery.

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