Each of the nine nights of Navratri belongs to one form of Maa Durga, and each form has her own colour, her own chunri, her own flower and her own bhog. Day one is red for Shailputri, day two yellow for Brahmacharini, and the sequence runs through to maroon for Siddhidatri on the ninth night. This correspondence does not move from year to year, because it belongs to the Devi and not to the calendar.
Below is the full nine-night table for Sharad Navratri 2026, which runs from Sunday 11 October to Monday 19 October, with Vijayadashami on Tuesday 20 October. Dates are set to Dubai.
Why a chunri set has ten pieces for nine nights
It is the first thing people ask when they open the box, and it is not a mistake.
The seventh night, Kalaratri, carries two colours. Some families offer blue to her and some offer grey, and both are correct - it follows the practice your family has always kept rather than a rule that settles it one way. A ten-piece set covers nine nights with the seventh night served either way, so whichever tradition you follow, you are not left short.
The ten are red, yellow, white, brown, pink, green, blue, orange, maroon and grey.
Two different colour systems, and which one this is
There are two colour traditions running through Navratri and they are easy to mix up, because both are real.
This one is the Devi-wise correspondence. It is fixed. Shailputri takes red every year, Kalaratri takes blue or grey every year. It governs what you offer - the chunri draped over the Devi, the flower, the bhog.
The other is the weekday sequence, which rotates with the calendar because it is set by the day of the week each night falls on. That is the one published fresh every year for garba nights, and it governs what you wear. For 2026 that sequence is in our Navratri 2026 dates and Ghatasthapana guide.
So if you have seen "day one is orange" somewhere and "day one is red" here, neither is wrong. One is the saree, the other is the chunri.
Day 1 - Red for Maa Shailputri
Sunday 11 October 2026, Pratipada
After Ghatasthapana, the first prayers go to Maa Shailputri, daughter of Himavan, king of the mountains. Shaila means peak. She is shown with two hands, a trishul in the right and a lotus in the left, a crescent moon on her forehead, seated on Nandi the bull. She is the goddess of the Muladhara, the root chakra, where the awakening begins its journey upward.
- Chunri to offer: Red
- Flower: Red hibiscus
- Bhog: Pure ghee
- Mantra: ॐ देवी शैलपुत्र्यै नमः (Om Devi Shailaputryai Namah)
Day 2 - Yellow for Maa Brahmacharini
Monday 12 October 2026, Dwitiya
Brahmacharini is Parvati in her years of penance, before her marriage, holding a japa mala in one hand and a kamandalu in the other. The name joins brahman, the absolute, with charini, one whose conduct follows it. A thousand years of tapasya stand behind this form, which is why it is read as love and endurance rather than softness.
- Chunri to offer: Yellow
- Flower: Jasmine
- Bhog: Sugar or mishri
- Mantra: ॐ देवी ब्रह्मचारिण्यै नमः (Om Devi Brahmacharinyai Namah)
Day 3 - White for Maa Chandraghanta
Tuesday 13 October 2026, Tritiya
Chandra is the moon, ghanta is the bell. She wears a half-moon on her forehead shaped like a bell, and that is where the name comes from. She rides a tiger and carries weapons in her hands, and the sound of her bell is said to have ended many asuras in battle.
A bell makes one sound and one only. The moon stands for the restless mind. Read together, the third night is about bringing a scattered mind to a single point.
- Chunri to offer: White
- Flower: Jasmine
- Bhog: Milk, kheer or any milk sweet
- Mantra: ॐ देवी चन्द्रघण्टायै नमः (Om Devi Chandraghantayai Namah)
Day 4 - Brown for Maa Kushmanda
Wednesday 14 October 2026, Chaturthi
Ku is little, ushma is warmth, anda is the cosmic egg. The whole universe is said to have come from her faint smile, and she dwells at the centre of the sun so that it can release its energy outward. She is worshipped for vitality, health and strength.
- Chunri to offer: Brown
- Flower: Red hibiscus
- Bhog: Malpua
- Mantra: ॐ देवी कूष्माण्डायै नमः (Om Devi Kushmandayai Namah)
Day 5 - Pink for Maa Skandamata
Thursday 15 October 2026, Panchami
Skanda is Kartikeya, and this is his mother, carrying him on her lap. Four arms, a lotus in two of them, seated on a lion. When the devas needed a commander for the war against Tarakasura it was her son they chose, and she is worshipped in the form that holds him.
This is the vatsalya aspect, the maternal one. Devotees who worship this form are said to receive the blessing of Kartikeya at the same time, which belongs to Skandamata alone.
- Chunri to offer: Pink
- Flower: Red hibiscus
- Bhog: Fruit, bananas especially
- Mantra: ॐ देवी स्कन्दमातायै नमः (Om Devi Skandamatayai Namah)
Day 6 - Green for Maa Katyayani
Friday 16 October 2026, Shashthi
Born from the combined anger of the gods to end Mahishasura, and raised as the daughter of the sage Katyayana, from whom she takes her name. She rides a lion with four arms, a sword and a lotus on the left, the right hands in mudra.
She is the form the gopis of Vrindavan worshipped through the month of Margashirsha, keeping the Katyayani vrat to ask for Krishna as a husband. That is why unmarried girls keep this day with particular care, and why green, the colour of growth and new beginnings, belongs to it.
- Chunri to offer: Green
- Flower: Red hibiscus
- Bhog: Coconut
- Mantra: ॐ देवी कात्यायन्यै नमः (Om Devi Katyayanyai Namah)
Day 7 - Blue or Grey for Maa Kalaratri
Saturday 17 October 2026, Saptami
The fiercest of the nine. Dark as the night that gives her the name, riding a donkey, four-handed, the right hands in abhaya and varada mudra, a sword and an iron hook in the left. She is the destroyer of what stands in the way, and the other fierce forms - Bhadrakali, Chamundeshwari, Bhairavi, Chandi - belong to the same family.
Night is also an aspect of the Mother. It brings rest, and it is only at night that we see how far the sky goes.
This is the night that takes two colours. Blue in some families, grey in others. Offer the one your family keeps.
- Chunri to offer: Blue or grey
- Flower: Raat ki rani
- Bhog: Jaggery
- Mantra: ॐ देवी कालरात्र्यै नमः (Om Devi Kalaratryai Namah)
Day 8 - Orange for Maa Mahagauri
Sunday 18 October 2026, Saptami continues
Gauri means fair, and maha intensifies it. After years of penance left her darkened, she bathed in the Mansarovar and emerged radiant, and this is that form. Four arms, a trishul, a damaru, the lower hand in blessing.
Mahagauri is the form associated with forgiveness. She is said to purify anyone who genuinely asks, which is why the eighth night is kept for letting go of what has been carried too long.
- Chunri to offer: Orange
- Flower: Raat ki rani
- Bhog: Coconut, kheer or milk sweets
- Mantra: ॐ देवी महागौर्यै नमः (Om Devi Mahagauryai Namah)
Day 9 - Maroon for Maa Siddhidatri
Monday 19 October 2026, Ashtami and Navami together
Siddhi is attainment, datri is she who gives. She granted the eighteen siddhis to Shiva himself. When Brahma was creating the universe and needed both a man and a woman, it was Siddhidatri who turned half of Shiva's body into a woman's, which is how Shiva came to be Ardhanarishwar.
Note the compression this year. Ashtami ends mid-morning on Monday 19 October and Navami begins straight after, so both fall on the same day. Families who keep Kanya Pujan on Ashtami and the havan on Navami will be doing both that morning. Our Kanya Pujan 2026 guide works through the timings.
- Chunri to offer: Maroon
- Flower: Jasmine or raat ki rani
- Bhog: Suji ka halwa
- Mantra: ॐ देवी सिद्धिदात्र्यै नमः (Om Devi Siddhidatryai Namah)
Set up for all nine nights
One chunri for each colour, one frame carrying all nine forms.
The nine colours at a glance
| Night | Date, 2026 | Devi | Chunri | Bhog |
| 1 | Sun 11 Oct | Shailputri | Red | Pure ghee |
| 2 | Mon 12 Oct | Brahmacharini | Yellow | Mishri |
| 3 | Tue 13 Oct | Chandraghanta | White | Milk or kheer |
| 4 | Wed 14 Oct | Kushmanda | Brown | Malpua |
| 5 | Thu 15 Oct | Skandamata | Pink | Banana |
| 6 | Fri 16 Oct | Katyayani | Green | Coconut |
| 7 | Sat 17 Oct | Kalaratri | Blue or grey | Jaggery |
| 8 | Sun 18 Oct | Mahagauri | Orange | Coconut or kheer |
| 9 | Mon 19 Oct | Siddhidatri | Maroon | Suji halwa |
Keeping the colours in a UAE home
Across Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Ajman most families keep Navratri in an apartment, and a few things follow from that.
Net chunris suit a small mandir. A heavy chunri hides the Devi's face once you are three or four layers in. Net drapes light enough that nine layers still show her.
Fresh hibiscus and raat ki rani are hard to find here on the day you need them. Both appear on this list more than once, so order flowers ahead rather than assuming, or offer what is available with the right intention. A flower you actually have beats one you meant to buy.
Match the bhog to what you can make on a working morning. Ghee, mishri, jaggery, banana and coconut need no cooking at all, which covers five of the nine nights. Malpua, kheer and halwa are the three that want time, and they fall on Wednesday, one Sunday and the final Monday.
Common questions
Why does a Navratri chunri set have ten pieces when there are nine nights?
Because the seventh night, Kalaratri, is offered blue in some families and grey in others. Both are correct. A ten-piece set covers all nine nights with the seventh served either way, so you are not left short whichever practice your family keeps.
Are the Navratri colours the same every year?
The Devi-wise colours on this page never change - red belongs to Shailputri every year. The other sequence you see published, the one used for garba and for what people wear, does change, because it is set by the weekday each night falls on. Both are genuine, they just answer different questions.
Do I have to offer a chunri every night, or only once?
Either is kept. Many families drape the new colour over the previous one so the Devi carries all nine by the last night. Others change it daily and keep the used chunris folded, offering the whole stack at visarjan. Do what your family has always done.
What if I cannot get the right colour on a particular night?
Offer red. It is the colour of the Devi herself, it is accepted on any night, and a red chunri offered with attention is better than the correct colour offered in a rush.
What do I do with the chunris after Navratri?
They are offered, so they are not reused as ordinary cloth. Most families keep them with the pooja things or immerse them respectfully in flowing water along with the rest of the samagri after Vijayadashami. Do not put them in household waste.
Can I wear the same colour as the chunri I am offering?
Yes, and many people do, but the two systems are separate. The chunri colour belongs to the Devi of that night. What you wear follows the weekday sequence, which for 2026 is in our Navratri dates guide.
Which colour is for Durga Ashtami and Maha Navami in 2026?
Both fall on Monday 19 October this year, which is the ninth night, so maroon for Siddhidatri. Ashtami ends mid-morning and Navami begins immediately after.
Does the flower or the bhog matter more than the colour?
None of the three outranks the others, and none of them is the point on its own. The colour, the flower and the bhog together are a way of giving the night your attention. Offer what you can source and prepare honestly, and keep the same care across all nine.
Add Divine to your Rituals.
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