Kali Puja 2026: Shyama Puja midnight timings for Kolkata, Delhi

Kali Puja, also called Shyama Puja, falls on the night of Sunday, November 8, 2026, with its main worship timed for the Nishita Kaal, the period around midnight, according to Drik Panchang's Bengal Kali Puja listing. Amavasya, the new-moon tithi, begins at 11:27 am on November 8 and ends at 12:31 pm on November 9, so the midnight of November 8 falls fully inside it. The Nishita window is listed as 11:39 pm on November 8 to 12:31 am on November 9 for New Delhi, and roughly 10:55 pm to 11:46 pm for Kolkata in other panchang listings.

Most people know that Diwali and Kali Puja fall on the same night, but fewer know why the timing of each is fixed differently. The answer lies in the rules the panchang applies to each festival.

A tithi is a lunar day, measured by the changing angle between the Sun and the Moon. It does not begin at midnight or sunrise, and in 2026 the Amavasya tithi starts in the late morning of November 8. A festival is tied to a tithi, but each festival also has a rule about which part of the day counts.

For Lakshmi Puja, the rule looks at the evening, the Pradosh period after sunset. For Kali Puja, the panchang looks at midnight. Drik Panchang notes that the midnight period on Amavasya is considered the best time for Kali Puja. This midnight window is called Nishita Kaal. Because Amavasya runs from 11:27 am on November 8 to 12:31 pm on November 9, both the evening and the midnight of November 8 fall inside it. So, this year, Lakshmi Puja and Kali Puja share the same calendar date, at different hours.

The Nishita window itself depends on place. It depends on local sunset and sunrise times, so it shifts from city to city. That is why the window for Kolkata, in the east, begins nearly 45 minutes earlier than the window for New Delhi or Ujjain. Families and puja committees in different cities therefore see different times printed for the same night, and both can be correct for their own location.

The one-day difference in some calendars has a similar source. Different traditions apply slightly different rules about which day an observance belongs to when a tithi spans two civil dates. One Drik Panchang listing used by ISKCON followers in Kolkata places its Dipavali and Kali Puja entry on November 9, while the main Bengal Kali Puja page and the Bengali panjika place Kali Puja on November 8. Readers should follow the calendar used by their own temple, community or puja committee.

Short-term: Households and puja committees that follow these panchangs will hold the main Kali Puja late on November 8, after Bhoot Chaturdashi on November 7, on the same night as Diwali.

Long-term: Knowing the rule behind each festival time, evening for Lakshmi Puja and midnight for Kali Puja, helps readers understand why calendars sometimes show different dates or times, rather than treating them as errors.

Who is affected: Families and community puja committees that observe Kali Puja, temple priests who fix puja times, and readers who follow more than one regional calendar.

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