Lal Loi is the Sindhi term for the Punjabi winter folk festival of Lohri. Jhuelel Mandir Sindhi Rasoi It is celebrated in some parts of the Pakistani province of Sindh by the Hindus and also celebrated by Sindhi Hindus in India. On the day of Lal Loi children bring wood sticks from their grand parents and aunties and light a fire burning the sticks in the night with people enjoying, dancing and playing around the fire.
Sindhis believe that the focus of Lal Loi should be on getting rid of old belongings and cleansing the mind in readiness of the festival of Tirmoor which is observed the day after Lal Loi by all Sindhis. Tirmoor is the Sindhi name for Makar Sankranti. J P Vaswani: Destination Happiness For Sindhis, Makar Sankranti means worshipping Lord Sun and flying kites.Nidhin Singhi "Lohri gaiety warms all" Times of India 13 01 2012
According to some, not all Sindhis observe Lal LoiNidhin Singhi "Lohri gaiety warms all" Times of India 13 01 2012 and the festival may have been observed by people of Upper Sindh where historically there has been inward migration from Punjab.Kumar, P. Pratap (2014) Contemporary Hinduism It is however difficult to establish where Lal Loi was celebrated in Sindh or if it is observed there now. However, the Sindhis community in India celebrate Lal Loi annually where festivals are organised in places such as Indore where the festival is organised by the Sindhu Sabha, Hindustan Times: 12 01 2014 Mumbai and Udaipur. Udaipur Times, Gaurav Bhandari 13 01 2013
In places where Sindhis and Punjabis live in the same city, joint Lal Loi/Lohri festivals are organised. Merinews: Dr Lalit Kishore 08 01 2014
See also Makar Sankranti Pongal Ahir Bhogali Bihu Sankranti Winter Solstice Lohri
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