Lohri

A bandit who defied the Mughals became the hero of a children’s song sung at every Lohri bonfire. Lohri marks the end of winter, and the harvest of Punjab’s rabi crop. It’s one of North India’s biggest festivals — and almost nothing about it has been written here before.

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Lohri

A winter bonfire, a bandit’s legend, and the last night before the Sun turns north

13 January, every year

The night before Makar Sankranti

Lohri falls on the eve of the Sun’s move into Uttarayana, marking the rabi harvest and the end of winter.

At dusk

The bonfire is lit

Families gather round the fire and throw in til, rewri, peanuts, and popcorn as offerings.

Around the fire

Sundar Mundariye is sung

The folk song retells Dulla Bhatti’s tale — the 16th-century Punjabi outlaw who rescued two girls from forced marriage.

Beyond Punjab

Celebrated under different names

Haryana, Delhi, and Jammu keep the same bonfire tradition; Himachal Pradesh calls it Maghi.

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Origins and Significance Need to Know

• Lohri is a winter harvest festival, celebrated mainly in Punjab, on the night of 13 January every year.
• It falls on the eve of Makar Sankranti, the solar festival marking the Sun’s transition into Uttarayana, its northward journey.
• Lohri marks the harvest of the rabi crop — wheat, sugarcane, and mustard, sown in winter and cut around this time.
• The festival’s exact origin isn’t precisely dated. It grew out of the lived rhythms of North Indian farming communities, tied to the Sun and the harvest calendar.
• Lohri holds special significance for newlyweds and newborns. A family’s first Lohri after a wedding or a birth is celebrated with extra warmth, gifts, and blessings.

The Bonfire, and the Legend of Dulla Bhatti Good to Know

• At the centre of Lohri is a bonfire, lit at dusk. Families and neighbours gather around it together.
• People throw til (sesame seeds), rewri, peanuts, and popcorn into the flames as offerings, then share the same items as festive food afterward.
• The bonfire itself carries a simple meaning. It stands for warmth and light overtaking the dark, cold heart of winter.
• The song sung around the fire, Sundar Mundariye, tells the story of Dulla Bhatti, a Punjabi outlaw active during the reign of the Mughal emperor Akbar.
• Dulla Bhatti is remembered for defying Mughal authorities and rescuing two girls, Sundri and Mundri, from being forced into the Mughal court’s household. He arranged their marriages instead.
• That act of protection is why the folk song still carries his name, sung at Lohri gatherings across Punjab today.

Test Yourself

Please wait…

1. Lohri, celebrated on 13 January, falls on the eve of which solar festival?

Diwali

Makar Sankranti

Baisakhi

Onam

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Beyond Punjab Great to Know

• Lohri isn’t only a Punjab festival. It’s also widely celebrated in Haryana, Delhi, Jammu, and Himachal Pradesh.
• Each region keeps its own twist on the same core ritual. In parts of Haryana, people toss wooden sticks into the bonfire, believed to ward off evil spirits.
• In Himachal Pradesh, the same festival is called Maghi. People light bonfires there using tilgud, a mix of sesame and jaggery.
• In Jammu, the festival is sometimes called Lohri or Khichari, and the same offerings of popcorn and peanuts go into the fire.
• Lohri is observed by both Hindu and Sikh communities across North India, cutting across the region’s religious lines.
• The festival sits at the same calendar point as harvest festivals celebrated elsewhere in India under different names and rituals — a reminder that the same solar transition is marked very differently across regions.