Navaratri 2026 in Chennai: Golu Displays, Garba & Festival Events

Navaratri 2026 runs from Sunday 11 October to Tuesday 20 October. In Tamil Nadu's official holiday list, Ayudha Puja (Saraswati Puja) falls on Monday 19 October and Vijayadasami on Tuesday 20 October. In Chennai the festival means golu, also written kolu: stepped displays of clay and papier-mâché dolls set up in homes, temples, sabhas and shops for nine nights, with neighbours invited in the evenings for sundal and songs. Mylapore is the centre of it. Doll sellers take over the pavements of North Mada Street beside the Kapaleeshwarar Temple from weeks before the festival, and the temple and nearby halls put up large displays. State-run craft outlets also hold golu-doll exhibitions and sales in the run-up. Alongside the Tamil tradition, the city's Gujarati, Rajasthani and Bengali communities and several hotels, clubs and colleges host garba and dandiya nights and Durga Puja pandals, mostly on the weekend before Vijayadasami. Sabhas schedule Navaratri music and dance series, and on Vijayadasami temples and schools hold Vidyarambham, when young children are introduced to letters, music and dance. This page lists golu displays, doll markets, garba and dandiya nights, Durga Puja celebrations and Navaratri concerts across Chennai as organisers announce them.