Plan your trip · Chennai
What's on in Chennai
Upcoming festivals, fairs and events in Chennai — plan your visit around them, then check the best time to visit.
Nothing dated is confirmed for Chennai right now, so here is the year instead — the fixtures that come round annually, and what each one means for a visit.
The year in Chennai
Chennai's calendar works around the monsoon — the big outdoor events sit either side of it, and the wettest weeks are the quietest ones for anything held in the open. Broadly, Oct – Mar is when visiting is most comfortable here, and that is when the calendar is busiest — which also means accommodation is most expensive and books furthest ahead.
Most of these follow lunar calendars and move by weeks from year to year, so treat the windows below as the season rather than the date, and confirm the year’s dates before you book around one.
Across Tamil Nadu
Pongal
🗓️ mid-JanuaryThe four-day harvest festival — the first rice of the season boiled over until it spills, which is the point.
Planning: Shops shut and intercity buses fill; plan travel around it.
Temple car festivals
🗓️ March–June, by templeVast wooden temple chariots pulled through the streets by hand at Madurai, Thanjavur, Kanchipuram and elsewhere.
Planning: Dates differ per temple and the streets close for hours.
Nationwide
Diwali
🗓️ October–NovemberThe biggest holiday of the year — lamps, sweets, fireworks and a week of visiting family. Cities are lit up and markets stay open late.
Holi
🗓️ MarchColoured powder and water, thrown at anyone within reach, mostly through the morning.
Navratri and Dussehra
🗓️ September–OctoberNine nights of fasting, music and dance, ending with Dussehra. What it looks like changes completely by region — garba in Gujarat, pandals in Bengal, processions in the south.
Eid al-Fitr
🗓️ shifts ~11 days earlier each yearThe end of Ramadan. The old quarters of Delhi, Hyderabad, Lucknow and Bhopal are at their best in the evenings through the preceding month, when food streets run past midnight.
Makar Sankranti and Pongal
🗓️ mid-JanuaryThe harvest turn, marked with kites in the west and north and four days of Pongal in Tamil Nadu.
Chennai's calendar is shaped by music, temples and the harvest. The biggest event for visitors is the Margazhi music season, which runs mainly through December and into January. Hundreds of concerts of Carnatic music and Bharatanatyam are held in sabhas (music halls) across the city, including the Music Academy, and many of the smaller concerts are free. In mid-January, Pongal celebrates the harvest with kolam patterns outside homes and sweet pongal cooked in new pots.
The Kapaleeshwarar Temple's Panguni festival, usually in March–April, fills the streets of Mylapore with chariot and deity processions. Festival dates follow the Tamil calendar and change each year, so check the latest schedule and book accommodation early if you plan your trip around an event.
Tips for Attending Events & Festivals in Chennai
- Book hotels and trains early for the music season and Pongal.
- Check the concert schedules for the music season online; popular evening concerts at the bigger sabhas can sell out.
- Arrive early at Mylapore for the Panguni processions, as the streets get very crowded.
- Expect shops, offices and some restaurants to close during Pongal, and long-distance buses to be full.
- Dress modestly for temple festivals and wear shoes you can remove easily.
- Carry water and keep your belongings secure in crowds.
Questions
Chennai — FAQ
What are the main festivals and events in Chennai?
The Margazhi music season in December and January, Pongal in mid-January and the Kapaleeshwarar Temple's Panguni festival in March–April are the highlights. Diwali and Vinayaka Chaturthi are also widely celebrated.
What is the Chennai music season?
The Chennai music season, or Margazhi season, is a series of Carnatic music and Bharatanatyam performances held mainly from mid-December to early January. Hundreds of concerts take place in sabhas across the city, and the Music Academy's festival has been held since 1927.
How is Pongal celebrated in Chennai?
Pongal is a four-day harvest festival held in mid-January. Families draw kolam patterns outside their homes and cook sweet pongal in new pots. Many shops and offices close, so plan your travel around it.
What is the Arupathimoovar festival?
It is a procession during the Kapaleeshwarar Temple's Panguni festival, usually in March or April, when idols of the 63 Shaivite saints, the Nayanmars, are carried around the streets of Mylapore. It is one of the biggest days of the year in the neighbourhood.