Lohri invitation messages, and the first Lohri of a baby or a newly married couple
Lohri invitation messages in English, Punjabi and Hindi for the family bonfire, a baby's first Lohri and a couple's first Lohri, with what to put on the card.
Lohri 2027 falls on Thursday, 14 January by Drik Panchang for New Delhi, though some calendars print 13 January. A Lohri invitation gives the evening, the time the fire is lit, the place and, for a first Lohri, whose it is: the baby's or the newly married couple's. Send it about two weeks ahead, in English, Punjabi or Hindi.
On this page
Most Lohri evenings need no invitation at all. The neighbours know where the fire will be. The one that does is the first Lohri: a baby's first winter in the family, or a bride's first Lohri in her new home. Then the family hosts properly, with a guest list, a caterer, a dhol and relatives who travel for it.
This page covers what goes on a Lohri invitation, how a baby's first Lohri and a couple's first Lohri are worded, and gives messages you can copy in English, Punjabi (in Roman letters, the way most people type it on WhatsApp) and Hindi.
When is Lohri 2027?
Lohri is held on the evening before Maghi, the day the sun enters Capricorn (Makar Sankranti). In 2027 that moment comes at 9:14 pm IST on 14 January, after sunset, so Drik Panchang lists Lohri on Thursday, 14 January 2027 for New Delhi and Makar Sankranti on Friday, 15 January. Several calendars and wishes sites still print 13 January, because Lohri is usually the 13th.
Before anything is printed or sent, check the date your family's own calendar or gurdwara gives. Many families also hold a first Lohri party on the nearest weekend instead of the day itself, which is perfectly normal: the invitation should then say the party's date, and the word Lohri, so nobody turns up a day early.
What to put on a Lohri invitation
- Whose Lohri it is. For a family evening, just the family name. For a first Lohri, the baby's name (or 'our son' or 'our daughter' if the name is not announced yet), or the couple's two names.
- The date, with the day. 'Thursday, 14 January 2027' leaves no room for the 13th-or-14th confusion.
- The time the fire is lit. Guests plan around it. Put it plainly: 'Bonfire at 7:30 pm, dinner from 8:30 pm'.
- The place, with a map. A home terrace, a farmhouse, a banquet lawn or a society ground. Say if it is outdoors, so elders bring a shawl.
- What the evening holds. The fire and the parikrama, the dhol, bhangra and gidda, dinner. One line is enough.
- Who is inviting. Grandparents' names first in many families, then the parents.
- A number to call, and an RSVP if there is a caterer counting plates.
- Dress, if you want one. 'Come in phulkari' or 'Punjabi suits and kurtas' is a nice touch for a first Lohri photograph.
| Family Lohri | Baby's first Lohri | First Lohri after marriage | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who hosts | The family, the society or the gurdwara | The baby's parents and grandparents | Usually the groom's family |
| Whose name leads | The family name | The baby's | The couple's two names |
| Guest list | Neighbours, friends | Both sides of the family, close friends | Both families, the wedding's close circle |
| How early to send | A week | Two to three weeks | Two to three weeks |
| Usual extras | Rewari, gajak, peanuts, popcorn | The baby in new clothes, gifts from the maternal side | The bride's family sends gifts; the bride in new clothes and chooda |
Baby's first Lohri
A baby's first Lohri is the family's way of introducing the child to everyone at once. The parents usually host, with the grandparents named first, and the baby's maternal family (the nanke) traditionally sends clothes, sweets and gifts for the child. The baby is carried around the fire, relatives give shagun, and the evening runs on dhol, bhangra and dinner.
For a long time the big first Lohri was held only for a son. Many Punjabi families now hold it just the same for a daughter, and some call it Dhee di Lohri (a daughter's Lohri) on the card itself. If that is what you are doing, say so proudly in the first line.
What to write
- Lead with the baby. 'Our little [Name]'s first Lohri' says everything in four words.
- Add the birth month if the baby is very new: guests like to know they are meeting a two-month-old.
- Name the grandparents. Elders read the card for whose house it is.
- Say what to expect for a small child's sake. If the fire is outdoors and the baby comes out only for the parikrama, guests will understand why the evening starts with it.
Families sometimes ask us for a baby's Lohri invitation months ahead, before the date is even fixed. That is fine with a link: it can go out with 'January 2027, date to follow' and be updated once the date is set, and everyone who already has it sees the change.
First Lohri after marriage
A couple's first Lohri is the bride's welcome into her new family's winter. It is usually hosted by the groom's family in the first January after the wedding. The bride wears new clothes and often her chooda, the couple sit or walk around the fire together, and her parents' side sends gifts: clothes, jewellery, sweets and rewari for the household.
If the wedding itself was in December or January, families sometimes fold the first Lohri into the wedding week, or hold it the year after. Ask the elders which your family does before you send anything.
What to write
- Both names, the bride's first or the groom's, in the order your family uses on its wedding card.
- 'Their first Lohri together' is the phrase guests look for.
- Invite the bride's family by name if they are coming from another city. It is their evening too.
- Keep the wedding link. If the couple had an invitation website, its photographs and story are worth sending again with the Lohri details.
The Punjabi and Hindi lines, explained
The samples below use a few lines that come up on almost every Punjabi invitation. Here is what they mean, so you can mix them.
| Language | The line | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Punjabi | Lohri diyan lakh lakh vadhaiyan | A hundred thousand congratulations on Lohri |
| Punjabi | Sadde [Name] di pehli Lohri | Our [Name]'s first Lohri |
| Punjabi | Tusi parivar sameit zaroor padhaaro | Do come with your whole family |
| Punjabi | Tuhadi haazri saadi khushi | Your presence is our joy |
| Hindi | पहली लोहड़ी | The first Lohri |
| Hindi | सपरिवार सादर आमंत्रित | You and your family are warmly invited |
| Hindi | आपकी उपस्थिति प्रार्थनीय है | We request your presence |
A WhatsApp message or a link
For a family Lohri, a short WhatsApp message is enough. For a first Lohri with fifty or a hundred guests, two problems come up: the date confusion between the 13th and the 14th, and nobody knowing how many will come. A one-page link with the date, the bonfire time, a map button and an RSVP solves both, and it can be changed after it is sent.
| WhatsApp text | Image card | Invitation link | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free | Free in a design app, or a paid template | From ₹2,499 made by hand at Invifest |
| Map to the venue | Paste a pin separately | No | A map button |
| Change the date after sending | Send again | Make and send a new image | Edit once, everyone sees it |
| Know who is coming | Count replies by hand | Count replies by hand | RSVP with a guest count |
| Photographs of the baby or the couple | Separate images | One | As many as you like |
How to send it so elders open it is in the WhatsApp invitation guide, and a few lines to add for relatives abroad are in the guide for NRI guests.
A first Lohri invitation from Invifest
Our Phulkari design is stitched in phulkari colour, which is what most Punjabi families reach for in January. It is made as a wedding invitation, but its sections fit a first Lohri just as well: the baby's or the couple's photographs, the evening with the bonfire time, the venue with a map, background music and an RSVP. It is made by hand from your details, with two rounds of changes, from ₹2,499. Tell us on WhatsApp that it is for a Lohri before you order, so the wording and the opening are set for it.
For more Punjabi wording, see Punjabi wedding invitations, the Sukhmani Sahib Path invitation many families hold before a big occasion, and the other Sikh wedding designs.
Lohri messages you can copy
English first, then Punjabi in Roman letters, then Hindi. Change everything in [brackets], and check the date against your own calendar.
The fire is ready, the rewari is in, the dhol is booked.
Join the [Surname] family for Lohri
[Thursday, 14 January 2027]
Bonfire at [7:30 pm], dinner to follow
[Venue, City]
Come with the whole family.
Our little [Baby's name] is celebrating a very first Lohri!
[Grandparents' names]
and [Parents' names]
invite you to bless [him / her] around the fire
[Day, Date]
Bonfire at [Time], followed by dinner
[Venue, City]
Please let us know if you can come: [Number]
Dhee di Lohri
Our daughter [Baby's name] has filled our home with light, and this January we celebrate her first Lohri.
With love from [Parents' names]
and [Grandparents' names]
[Day, Date] at [Time]
[Venue, City]
Their first Lohri together
[Groom's name] and [Bride's name]
The [Surname] family invites you to celebrate the first Lohri of the newly married couple, with the fire, the dhol and dinner.
[Day, Date]
Bonfire at [Time]
[Venue, City]
Your blessings are all we ask for.
Lohri diyan lakh lakh vadhaiyan!
Sadde laadle [Baby's name] di pehli Lohri hai.
Tusi parivar sameit zaroor padhaaro te bachche nu aashirwad deo.
[Day, Date]
Agg baalan da samaa: [Time]
Thaan: [Venue, City]
Tuhadi haazri saadi khushi.
[Grandparents' names] te [Parents' names]
Saade ghar is vaar pehli Lohri hai!
[Groom's name] te [Bride's name] di viyah ton baad pehli Lohri te tusi saare sadde naal shaamil hovo.
[Day, Date], [Time] vaje
[Venue, City]
Parivar sameit zaroor padhaaro.
[Surname] parivar
लोहड़ी की लख-लख बधाइयाँ!
हमारे लाडले [बच्चे का नाम] की पहली लोहड़ी के शुभ अवसर पर
आप सपरिवार सादर आमंत्रित हैं।
[दिन, तिथि]
लोहड़ी जलाने का समय: [समय]
स्थान: [स्थान, शहर]
आपकी उपस्थिति प्रार्थनीय है।
[दादा-दादी के नाम] एवं [माता-पिता के नाम]
नवविवाहित [वर का नाम] और [वधू का नाम] की
पहली लोहड़ी
इस खुशी के अवसर पर आप सपरिवार सादर आमंत्रित हैं।
[दिन, तिथि], [समय] बजे
[स्थान, शहर]
विनीत: [परिवार का नाम] परिवार
Reminder: [Baby's name]'s first Lohri is tomorrow, [Day], at [Time]. The fire is outdoors, so bring a shawl. Map: [link]. See you there!
Want these words on a real invitation? Put them on one of our Sikh wedding designs.
Sikh wedding invitation designs
Our three Sikh wedding designs, each made for your family by our designers:
- Kalgi, a Sikh wedding invitation website in ivory and deep saffron, led by the kalgi motif.
- Ik Onkar, an Anand Karaj invitation website opening on Ik Onkar, in saffron and blue.
- Phulkari, a Punjabi wedding invitation website stitched in phulkari colour, for chooda, jaggo, mehndi and Anand Karaj.
Open any one to see it full size, with a live demo, or see all 3 Sikh wedding invitation designs.
Questions people ask
When is Lohri 2027?
Drik Panchang lists Lohri on Thursday, 14 January 2027 for New Delhi, with Makar Sankranti on Friday, 15 January, because the Sankranti moment falls at 9:14 pm IST on the 14th. Some calendars print 13 January, so check your family's own calendar or gurdwara before sending invitations.
Who hosts a baby's first Lohri?
The baby's parents and grandparents host, usually at the paternal family's home or a venue near it. The baby's maternal family traditionally sends clothes, sweets and gifts for the child. The invitation often names the grandparents first, then the parents.
What do you write on a first Lohri invitation?
Whose first Lohri it is (the baby's name or the couple's names), the date with the day, the time the fire is lit, the venue with a map, who is inviting, and a number or RSVP. One warm opening line, such as 'Our little [Name]'s first Lohri', is enough.
Who hosts the first Lohri after marriage?
Usually the groom's family, in the first January after the wedding. The bride wears new clothes and often her chooda, and her parents' family sends gifts for the couple and the household.
Is a first Lohri held for a girl?
Yes. Many Punjabi families now celebrate a daughter's first Lohri exactly as they would a son's, and some call it Dhee di Lohri on the invitation.
How early should a Lohri invitation be sent?
Two to three weeks ahead for a first Lohri, so relatives can travel, then a short reminder the day before. A neighbourhood Lohri needs only a week.
