Desi Month Date Today | India & Pakistan | 2025

The Indian subcontinent is noted for its varied cultural landscapes, and its calendar system is equally ancient and distinctive. Over centuries people have adopted multiple systems, each of them shaped by regional and religious traditions, leading to a rich tapestry of date-keeping practice.

Vikram Samvat Calendar:

The Vikram Samvat is regarded as the oldest Hindu calendar still in common use. Introduced around 57 BCE by King Vikram Aditya, this lunisolar scheme divides the year into twelve months. Many Hindu festivals and rituals fix their dates according to its time-table.

Bikrami Calendar:

Another early calendar, known as the Bikrami, appears beside the Vikram Samvat in historical records. Raja Bikram Ajit is said to have set it in motion circa 100 BCE. Today it finds primary use in the Punjab area of the subcontinent. Although often run alongside Vikram Samvat, its month names and specific observances show clear local variation.

The traditional Bikrami Calendar has twelve months, roughly matching the Gregorian year, yet each month begins when the crescent moon first appears. Being lunisolar, it still guides farmers and villagers who rely on its markers for planting seasons and cultural celebrations.

Nanakshahi Calendar:

Because the shifting lunar months of the Bikrami Calendar sometimes scrambled Sikh holy days, Pal Singh Purewal-a Sikh settler in Canada-adjusted that system, naming his version the Nanakshahi Calendar. Sikh leaders accepted his reform as the religions official timeline in 1993.

Hijri Calendar:

Islamic societies use the Hijri or Islamic Calendar, a purely lunar system bearing Arabic month names and also divided into twelve parts. Across the worlds Muslim nations, this shared calendar unites believers for each major feast or communal rite.

A fresh month begins when observers spot the new moon. The Hijri year, however, runs shorter than its solar neighbours, lasting 354 or 355 days depending on that lunar sighting.