Bestu Varas, the Gujarati New Year, is the first day of the bright half of Kartika, usually the day after Diwali. In 2026 it falls on Tuesday 10 November 2026, and the year that begins is Vikram Samvat 2083. Families go to the temple early, wear new clothes, draw rangoli at the door and visit relatives, neighbours and business friends with sweets and the greeting “Saal Mubarak” or “Nutan Varshabhinandan”.
Kartika Shukla Pratipada, at sunrise
The Gujarati calendar starts its year with the month of Kartika, not with Chaitra as most north Indian calendars do. The new year day is Kartika Shukla Pratipada, the first day of the bright half. This page takes the civil day on which Pratipada is running at sunrise, the usual rule for a new year day. If Pratipada is running at two sunrises, the first is taken. Our dates for New Delhi agree with the ones Drik Panchang publishes for 2026 and 2027.
In most years this is also the day of Govardhan Puja and Annakut, which fall on the same Pratipada. The two use different parts of the day (the new year looks at sunrise, Govardhan Puja at the afternoon), so in an odd year or city they can fall apart. Each page states its own rule.
2026: a day in between Diwali and the new year
Diwali’s Amavasya runs from 11:28 am on Sunday 8 November to 12:32 pm on Monday 9 November. So at sunrise on Monday 9 November Amavasya is still running, and Pratipada begins only at 12:32 pm on Monday 9 November. The first sunrise with Pratipada running is on Tuesday 10 November, and that is the new year.
The day between is neither the Diwali evening nor the new year by this rule. Some printed calendars still list the new year on Monday 9 November. If your family or community calendar does, follow it.
From Chopda Pujan to Labh Pancham
Many Gujarati traders worship their new account books (chopda pujan) on the Diwali evening, Sunday 8 November 2026. Shops and offices then stay closed for a few days of visits and travel, and open again for the year’s trade on Labh Pancham, Saturday 14 November 2026. Customs differ between families and trades.
One era, two new year days
Vikram Samvat is the era the Gujarati calendar counts its years in. In Gujarat the year number changes on Bestu Varas. Calendars in most of north India change the number of the same era in Chaitra, in spring, so for part of each year the two show the same number and for the rest they differ by one. The Vikram Samvat page explains both ways of counting.
A visit and a sweet are enough
The heart of the day is greeting elders, friends and neighbours and starting the year on good terms. A visit to the temple or a lamp at home, and a plate of sweets shared with the people around you, is a full observance.