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  • Lohri
    Students perform a traditional folk dance near a bonfire as they celebrate the Lohri festival, in the northern Indian city of Chandigarh. Lohri marks the culmination of winter in many parts of northern India and is celebrated on the 13th day of January every yearReuters
  • Lohri
    Lohri festival celebrations in AmritsarReuters
  • Lohri
    Indian women perform Giddhaa, a traditional folk dance, near a bonfire as they celebrate the Lohri festivalReuters
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    Police recruits dance during Lohri celebrationsReuters
  • Lohri
    Kite flying is popular in Punjab during Lohri festivalReuters

The main festival of Punjabis, Lohri, marks the culmination of winter by the worship of fire. It is a harvest festival which is celebrated on 13 January.

It is believed that Lohri falls on the shortest day of the year and is celebrated by lighting fire in the evening to mark the start of longer days. The bonfire is the most important feature of the celebrations as it symbolises the end of winter season.

Everyone gathers to form a circle around the bonfire and throw puffed rice and popcorn into it. They can be seen chanting "Aadae aye dilather jaye", which means "May honour come and poverty vanish", simutaneously.

The celebrations also include folk songs, men doing Bhangra on drum beats and women performing Gidda. Also, kite flying is a popular activity in Punjab during the festival.

Lohri is also known as the harvest festival as it's during this time that sugarcane crops are harvested. Therefore, jaggery is the main sweet during this festival. Other items that are relished by people during this time are til (sesame) seeds, peanuts, and sweets like gazzak, rewri, etc.

On this auspicious day, many celebrities took to social media to wish everyone. From film fraternities to the President of India, all the big names greeted their followers with "Happy Lohri" messages.

Check out the above slideshow of people celebrating Lohri.

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