Ugadi (Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana) and Gudi Padwa (Maharashtra, Goa) are the new year of the lunar calendar, on the first day of the bright half of Chaitra, in spring. Homes get mango-leaf torans, families wear new clothes, and everyone eats a mix of neem and jaggery: bevu-bella, or Ugadi pachadi with six tastes. The message for a child: a new year will have sweet days and bitter days, and we can face both together.
Dates as per Drik Panchang, New Delhi. Your local panchang may differ by a day.
In this article
Why do we celebrate Ugadi?
"Ugadi" comes from yuga adi, the beginning of an age. It is the first day of the lunar year in the Amanta calendar followed across much of South and West India. Neem and mango trees are covered in new leaves, and the harvest is in.
Our tradition holds that Brahma began creating the world on this day. In Maharashtra, the gudi raised outside the home is linked to victory and to welcoming good things.
The same new year has many names: Ugadi in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana; Gudi Padwa in Maharashtra and Goa; Cheti Chand for Sindhis; Navreh for Kashmiri Pandits. Tamil Puthandu and Kerala's Vishu, in mid-April, are new years of the solar calendar.
From my home
In our home, my mother and my granny made the bevu-bella. On Ugadi we had a bath with coconut oil, and neem leaves were applied on the body. I still remember that ritual.
Manjunath
The six tastes of the new year
The most famous Ugadi tradition is a small bowl of Ugadi pachadi (or bevu-bella, neem and jaggery, in Karnataka). It mixes six tastes, and each one stands for a part of the year ahead.
🍯Sweet: jaggery
Tradition Happy days.
🌿Bitter: neem flowers
Tradition Hard days.
🥭Sour-tangy: raw mango
Tradition New surprises.
🟤Sour: tamarind
Tradition Days we have to be patient.
🧂Salty: salt
Tradition The interest and flavour of life.
🌶️Spicy: chilli or pepper
Tradition Exciting, challenging moments.
Engineer's note
This is one of the cleverest pieces of design in our tradition. Instead of wishing only for a sweet year, it hands you a spoon with every taste in it and says: all of these are coming, eat them together. It is resilience in one mouthful.
Do together
Make a tiny bowl of the six tastes with her. Let her have a tiny lick of each one first and name it (skip the chilli for under-3s), then mix. Ask: "Which taste was hardest? We can handle it when it's mixed with the sweet."
What we do, and what it means
🛁Oil bath and new clothes
Tradition The day starts early with an oil bath and new clothes: a fresh start.
🍃Mango-leaf toran
Tradition Fresh mango leaves at the door welcome the new year.
Do together: she hands you the leaves to tie.🚩The gudi
Tradition In Maharashtra, a bright cloth on a bamboo stick, topped with an upturned pot, neem and flowers, is raised outside the window: a flag of victory and welcome.
📜Panchanga shravanam
Tradition Families listen to the year's almanac being read: what the new year may bring.
Why do festivals like Ugadi matter to children? A review of 50 years of research linked family rituals with children who cope better and families who feel closer. The researchers point to the meaning rituals carry: "this is who we are".
Fiese et al., Journal of Family Psychology, 2002.Read it aloud tonight: The Bowl of Six Tastes
A bedtime version of the story, about four minutes to read. Read it slowly, pause at the questions, and let her answer.
On the first morning of the new year, a little boy woke up early. The house smelled of oil and flowers. Mango leaves hung over the door like a green smile.
His grandmother called him into the kitchen. On the plate was a tiny bowl.
"What is it, Ajji?" he asked.
"This is the taste of the new year," she said. "Taste it, one little bit at a time."
First, a bit of jaggery. "Sweet!" he smiled. "That is for the happy days," said Ajji.
Then, a tiny neem flower. "Bitter!" he frowned. "That is for the hard days," said Ajji. "They come too."
Make your bitter face! Now your sweet face!
Then raw mango. "Tangy! Surprise!" "That is for the surprises in the year."
Then tamarind. "Sour." "That is for the days we have to wait."
Then a pinch of salt. "That is for the interesting days."
And last, a tiny bit of pepper. "Spicy!" "That is for the exciting, brave days."
Then Ajji mixed them all together and gave him a spoonful.
He tasted. It was sweet, and a little bitter, and a little sour, and a little spicy, all at once. "It's good!" he said, surprised.
"Yes," said Ajji. "Alone, the bitter is hard. But mixed with everything else, and eaten together, it is good. The new year will have every kind of day. And we will face every one of them, together."
Which taste was your favourite? Which was the hardest?
The six tastes of Ugadi pachadi and bevu-bella, and the meaning families give them (tradition).
After the story
Make a tiny six-taste bowl together: a lick of each (skip the chilli for under-3s), then mixed. Ask: "Which was the hardest? Was it easier when it was mixed?"
How to explain Ugadi to your child
"Today is the new year! We wear new clothes and eat sweet jaggery and a tiny bit of bitter neem. Yummy and yucky together!"
"Ugadi is our new year. We eat a mix of six tastes: sweet, bitter, sour, salty, tangy and spicy. That's because the new year will have happy days and hard days, and some surprises. When we taste them all together, we remember that we can handle every kind of day, as a family."
The value she takes away
A new year will have sweet days and bitter days, and we can face both together. Ask her: "What was a bitter day for you? What made it better?"
Play this with your child
What bitter thing do we eat on Ugadi?
Neem! Mixed with sweet jaggery.
How many tastes are in Ugadi pachadi?
Six tastes, for every kind of day in the year.
What does Ugadi celebrate?
The new year!
Read next in this series
- Makar Sankranti, Pongal and Lohri, explained for kids Read
- Shlokas for kids, for every moment of the day Read
- 10 Indian values and the story behind each Read
Questions parents ask
Why do we celebrate Ugadi?
Ugadi is the lunar new year in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana (Gudi Padwa in Maharashtra and Goa), on the first day of the bright half of Chaitra. Our tradition holds that Brahma began creation on this day.
Why do we eat neem and jaggery on Ugadi?
Bevu-bella and Ugadi pachadi mix sweet, bitter, sour, salty, tangy and spicy tastes, a reminder that the new year will bring every kind of day, and that we can accept them all together.
What is the difference between Ugadi and Gudi Padwa?
They are the same new year, on the same day: Ugadi in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana; Gudi Padwa in Maharashtra and Goa.
What is the meaning of Ugadi?
"Ugadi" comes from "yuga adi", the beginning of an age.
When is Ugadi in 2027?
Wednesday, 7 April 2027 (Drik Panchang, New Delhi).
How do I explain Ugadi to a child?
Tell her it is the new year, let her taste each of the six tastes and name them, then explain that the year will have happy days and hard days, and we face them together.
If we want thoughtful adults tomorrow, we must be equally thoughtful about childhood today.
Manjunath · father, ex-VinFast lead design engineer, founder of VedaPlay
Follow the build, and the stories we test at home, on Instagram: @manjunath.build
Sources
- Drik Panchang (Chaitra Shukla Pratipada).
- Drik Panchang, festival calendars 2026 and 2027 (New Delhi).
- Fiese BH et al. (2002). A review of 50 years of research on naturally occurring family routines and rituals. Journal of Family Psychology 16(4):381-390.
