Rangoli at the front of a Chennai house for Puthandu

Sunday 14th April marks the start of a new year in several parts of Asia, as the traditional solar calendar ticks over. Tamil New Year, known in the Tamil language as Puthandu, will be celebrated in Chennai and across the state of Tamil Nadu, as well as by Tamil populations in Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Australia and around the world. The Tamil calendar differs from the Gregorian or Western calendar, in that it recognises 60-year cycles instead of an ongoing ‘counting-up’ of years. As such, today marks the first day of ‘Kaliyuga 5115’.

The first mango crop of the season

Tamil Nadu holds a public holiday on Tamil New Year, with citizens celebrating by decorating their houses and hosting large feasts for lunch. The Sri Meenakshi Temple in Madurai, arguably the cultural heart of the Tamil community, hosts a large celebration, while other towns display their first mango crop for the season. Money is often given as a gift from elders to the youth, while others clean their houses to symbolise a fresh start and renewal of family ties. The start of the Tamil Year also coincides with the onset of summer, and rural areas may also celebrate with the first harvest of the new season. Two weeks from now the hottest season will be at its height in India’s hottest state, with the beginning of Kathiri Veyyil, or the ‘fire star season’, when temperatures exceed 42°C on a daily basis.

Sri Meenakshi temple towers over Madurai

Tamil New Year falls at the beginning of the Hindu calendar, and as such it also coincides with the celebration of traditional new years in other cultures which are influenced by Hindu civilisation. In India, the states of Assam, Kerala, Odisha, Punjab, Tripura, Manipur and Rajasthan all celebrate their New Years’ Days today, while Hindus and Muslims from both Poshchim Bongo (West Bengal) and Bangladesh will mark the occasion. Sri Lanka shuts down today for the celebration of the new year, recognised by both the majority Buddhist Sinhalese population and the minority Hindu Tamils. Countries formerly ruled by, or influenced by Indian civilisation also host large celebrations, and the day is a public holiday in Burma (Myanmar), Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Nepal.

UrbanDuniya wishes all of its readers Puthandu Vazthukal (happy new year), with many healthy and prosperous days ahead!