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Updated for Navratri 2026 · 8 min read

If you're a few days out from Ashtami or Navami and wondering how many thalis you actually need, what goes on each one, and whether steel is really worth it over disposables, this guide walks through all of it, in plain, simple terms.

During Navratri, Goddess Durga is worshipped in nine different forms over nine days. On Ashtami or Navami, many households take this a step further, inviting young girls into their home and worshipping them as living representations of the goddess herself, before she is believed to move on to her next form. It's one of the gentlest parts of the whole festival: for one afternoon, a home turns into a small temple, and nine girls with beaming faces become the guests of honour.

If this is your first time hosting kanya pujan, it's completely normal to feel a little unsure about getting everything "right." The truth is, the ritual is forgiving, what matters most is the warmth you bring to welcoming the girls, not flawless ceremony. Once you know the basic steps and have the right thalis ready, everything else tends to fall into place on its own.

The ritual usually starts with washing the feet of each girl as she arrives, followed by a tilak on the forehead and a red mauli or kalava tied around the wrist, small gestures that mark her as an honoured guest for the day. Some families also offer a small chunni (a piece of cloth) as part of the welcome. Once everyone is seated, the real heart of the ritual begins: serving the meal.

A kanjak thali usually holds puri, chana (chickpea curry), a warm halwa, and a small portion of prasad. After the girls have eaten, most families give a small return gift, a coin, a sweet, or something a little more lasting like a tiny steel tiffin box, before touching their feet for blessings. That last part, the return gift, is often the one thing people leave to the last minute, so it helps to plan for it alongside the thalis rather than after.

The traditional count is nine girls plus one boy, known as the langura, ten kanjaks in total. If you're keeping it to close family, four to six thali sets are usually enough, since you can wash and reuse a couple of them between servings without much of a delay. For a larger community pujan or a bhandara-style gathering, it often makes more sense to buy fewer thalis and refill them in batches rather than owning ten-plus of everything upfront.

This is also why the "build your own combo" option further down this page works well for a lot of households, instead of committing to one large, fixed thali set, you can pick exactly how many plates, bowls, glasses, and spoons you need, based on how many kanjaks you're actually expecting this year.

The traditional menu is simple and doesn't need much special cooking. Most households make hot poori, a bowl of kale chane (black chickpea curry), and a warm suji or atta halwa, the three dishes are quick to prepare in bulk and hold up well even if some girls arrive a little later than others. A small portion of prasad from the pooja goes alongside these, usually placed in its own compartment so it doesn't mix with the rest of the food.

Some families add a small extra, a piece of fruit, a barfi or a laddoo, or even a fried papad on the side. None of this is compulsory, so feel free to keep it close to what your own family has always served. What matters more than the exact menu is having enough compartments so each item stays where it should, which is really what decides the right thali for you.

Disposable plates feel convenient for about an hour, right up until you're standing over a bin bag of oil-soaked paper after the last kanjak has left. Steel solves this cleanly. It doesn't hold on to the smell of ghee, oil, or masala after a wash, so the same set can go straight back into your kitchen cupboard with nothing lingering behind.

The bigger win, though, is what happens after Navratri ends. A steel thali set doesn't get thrown away, it slides back into your everyday kitchen use for the rest of the year, or gets packed away clean and ready to come out again for next year's pujan. Either way, nothing you spend on this year goes to waste. That's simply not true of a stack of paper plates.

A complete plate, a few compartment options, and a small halwa plate for sweets, pick whichever matches how you like to serve.

ONLY 3 LEFT

China Thali 5-Piece Set

₹655₹770

BEST PICK

5-Compartment Mess Tray (Pack of 2)

₹1,228₹1,574

PERFECT PLATE

Bhojan Thali 4-Compartment (14")

₹1,154₹1,479

ALMOST GONE

Halwa Plate Set of 12 (12.2cm)

₹860₹1,103

Prefer to put together your own combination? Pick a serving dish, a bowl set for chana or dahi, glasses for water, and a spoon set, exactly the count your household needs.

LIMITED STOCK

German Bogi Dish Set of 6, 21.5cm

₹1,548₹1,985

FEW LEFT

German Bogi Dish Set of 6, 18.5cm

₹1,241₹1,591

GREAT CHOICE

Two Tone Bowl Set of 6, 250ml

₹941₹1,206

BIG BATCH

Two Tone Bowl Set of 12, 250ml

₹1,916

TOP RATED

Mango Glass Set of 6, 300ml

₹1,040₹1,300

VALUE BUY

Sheetal Glass Set of 6, 300ml

₹880₹1,100

STURDY PICK

Moscow Table Spoon Set of 12

₹752₹940

SMOOTH GRIP

Florence Table Spoon Set of 12

₹752₹940

The tiffin box that goes home with each kanjak is often what's remembered long after the pujan is over. These come in soft pastel shades the girls will love, and they'll actually use them all year.

CUTE PICK

Go Tiffin 2-Compartment, Pink

₹960₹1,200

PERFECT RETURN GIFT

Go Tiffin 3-Compartment, Pink

₹1,120₹1,400

GREAT FOR LANGURA

Go Tiffin 2-Compartment, Blue

₹960₹1,200

EVERYONE'S FAVOURITE

Go Tiffin 2-Compartment, Grey

₹960₹1,200

Halwa and prasad tend to leave behind a layer of ghee, especially in compartment corners. Let the thali soak in warm water for about 10 minutes before washing, this loosens the residue so it comes off easily with a mild detergent, or straight in the dishwasher.

Dry the set fully before storing it away, especially if you won't be using it again until next Navratri. A completely dry steel plate won't develop water spots or discolouration, so it looks just as good when you bring it back out next year.

Kanya pujan is a small ritual with a big heart, and having the right thalis ready simply lets you focus on the part that matters most, the girls in front of you. Whether you go with a complete set, build your own combination, or just need a few return gift tiffins, everything above is dishwasher safe, rust-free, and built to come back out every Navratri without any fuss.