Bonalu
Also called Mahankali Bonalu
When
Sunday, 11 July 2027 in 304 days
New Delhi · change location
See the complete panchang for that day →
Why this date?
Kept through the month of Ashadha, beginning at the Golconda temple and moving through the twin cities by week.
- Computed by the panchanga engine for your location
- Follows a written selection rule, not a copied list
- Governed by the whole day rather than a specific period
- The written guide has not yet been reviewed by a named scholar
Dates come from the calculation engine and are independent of the written guide. How we calculate →
What In short
Telangana's Mahankali festival. Women carry bonam — cooked rice with milk and jaggery in a decorated pot, often with a lamp on top — on their heads to the temple. Potharaju leads the procession, and the Rangam oracle is delivered on the final day.
- Deity: Mahankali
Why The reason behind it
It began as a plague offering: after an epidemic in the nineteenth century, a military battalion from Hyderabad vowed the goddess an offering if the city was spared. Bonam means meal, and the festival is literally the meal promised and delivered, year after year.
Traditional basis
Telangana Mahankali tradition — The nineteenth-century plague vow from which the modern festival descends.
Regional grama devata practice — The bonam offering and the Rangam oracle as village-goddess observance.
How At home, step by step
- Carry the bonam to the temple; the pot is the offering.
- Follow the Potharaju procession.
- The Rangam oracle is delivered on the concluding day.
Fasting and breaking the fast
Not a fasting festival.
Fasting guidance here describes traditional practice. It is not medical advice — if you are pregnant, diabetic, on medication or unwell, ask a doctor about your own circumstances.
Personal In your region
- Andhra & Telangana (Telugu)
A Telangana observance in particular; the Golconda, Ujjaini and Lal Darwaza temples set the sequence.
For children
Women carry pots of rice cooked with milk and jaggery on their heads to the goddess's temple, with a lamp burning on top.
Common questions
- Why does it run over several weeks?
- Because the temples take it in turn. It begins at Golconda and moves through the twin cities week by week, so the festival is a sequence of neighbourhood observances rather than one day.
This guide has not yet been reviewed by a named scholar or practising priest. The dates and times on this page come from the calculation engine and are independent of it; the explanatory text is editorial and may not reflect your family's practice. Tell us if something is wrong.