30 Navratri Gift Ideas: Handmade, Return and Kanya Pujan Gifts

Navratri is nine days of visiting. A garba night at a friend's society, golu at an aunt's house, Ashtami lunch with nine little girls, and the office in a different colour every day. Somewhere in that, you need Navratri gift ideas for people you cannot visit empty-handed.

The 30 ideas are sorted by who they are for, each with a price range and one line on why it works. Some are pieces we make, and we say so. The rest are things to look for at your local market or from other makers. A festival list that only sends you to one shop is an advertisement, not a guide.

When is Navratri 2026, and when do you need the gifts?

Sharad Navratri 2026 runs from Sunday 11 October to Monday 19 October. Durga Ashtami is on Sunday 18 October and Maha Navami on Monday 19 October; Kanya Pujan is done on one of these two days. Dussehra is on Tuesday 20 October. Dates can vary by a day between regions, so check your local panchang.

How to choose a Navratri gift

A good Navratri gift is small, festive and useful during the festival itself. Unlike Diwali, nobody expects a big box. Decide who it is for and how many you need, fix a price per person, and then choose one item that suits everyone in that group.

1. Count first. Nine girls for Kanya Pujan, twelve guests for golu, twenty people at the office. The number decides the budget.
2. Respect the fast. Many people are fasting, and what is allowed differs from house to house. Avoid food gifts unless you know the family's rules.
3. Choose things that are used now. Diyas, torans, flowers and bangles are used this week. A showpiece waits for a shelf.
4. Keep one design for a group. Children compare. Colleagues compare too.
5. Add a name where you can. A ₹300 gift with a name on it feels chosen. Without one, it feels bought.

Navratri gifts for family and the puja at home

These are for your own home, your parents or your in-laws: things that become part of the nine days.

1. Reusable marigold garlands

₹150 to ₹500 · Best for: the main door and the puja corner. Artificial genda strings go up on the first morning and still look fresh on Dussehra. Use fresh flowers for the offering itself. We make this.

2. A handmade toran

₹250 to ₹900 · Best for: parents and in-laws. A bandhanwar of fabric, beads or mirror-work over the door is the first thing every visitor sees. Mirror-work torans from Gujarat suit Navratri best.

3. A decorated pooja thali

₹499 to ₹1,200 · Best for: your mother or mother-in-law. It is used for the aarti every evening for nine days. Check that the decoration is fixed firmly; it will meet oil, kumkum and many hands.

4. A hand-embroidered chunri

₹150 to ₹600 · Best for: the family temple. A red chunri with gota or hand embroidery is offered to the Goddess on the first day or on Ashtami. Buy it from a local shop near a temple, where the sizes are right for your murti.

5. An everlasting flower arrangement

₹499 to ₹999 · Best for: grandparents who do the puja at home. An arrangement in red, orange and white sits beside the kalash and does not need replacing every second day. We make this.

6. A wall clock with the family name

₹899 to ₹1,499 · Best for: a Dussehra gift to parents. Dussehra is considered an auspicious day to bring something new into the home, and a clock with the family name is used every hour of every day. We make this.

Gifts for garba, dandiya and golu hosts

If someone has invited you to their society's garba, their home puja or their golu display, bring something they can use that same evening.

7. Hand-painted tealight holders

₹250 to ₹700 · Best for: a host with a balcony or a garba courtyard. Buy them in fours. Enclosed flames are safer than open diyas where people are dancing in long skirts.

8. A pair of decorated dandiya sticks

₹100 to ₹400 · Best for: the friend who never misses a night. Sticks wrapped in gota and bells by hand. Lighter wood is kinder on the wrists by the third hour.

9. A mirror-work potli or sling pouch

₹200 to ₹600 · Best for: garba nights, when she needs her phone and keys but has no pockets in a chaniya choli. Kutchi mirror-work is stitched by hand and goes with every colour of the nine.

10. Oxidised or thread jewellery

₹150 to ₹700 · Best for: a sister or a friend. Jhumkas, a choker or a maang tikka from an independent maker. Oxidised silver tones go with all nine colours, which nine sets of bangles do not.

11. A small handmade doll or clay figure for golu

₹150 to ₹800 · Best for: hosts in Tamil, Telugu and Kannada homes, where dolls are displayed on steps during Navratri. Families add at least one new piece each year, so a handmade figure is welcome. Ask what theme they follow.

12. An everlasting bouquet for the host

₹599 to ₹1,299 · Best for: when you do not know the family well. Ribbon roses in red or orange suit the festival, and unlike fresh flowers they are still on the table when you visit at Diwali. We make this.

What are good Kanya Pujan gifts?

Good Kanya Pujan gifts are small things a girl will use: a hair accessory, a pencil or colouring set, a lunch box, bangles or a keychain with her name. They are given along with the prasad of puri, kala chana and halwa, and a little dakshina. Give every child the same gift.

Kanya Pujan, also called Kanjak, is done on Ashtami or Navami. Nine young girls, seen as forms of the Goddess, are invited home, their feet are washed, they are fed and then given gifts. Many families invite one little boy as well. The girls are usually between two and ten years old, so choose gifts that are safe for small children: no sharp edges, no tiny loose parts for the youngest.

13. A set of hair clips and rubber bands

₹30 to ₹100 each · Best for: every age from two to ten. Fabric bows and handmade scrunchies in the day's colour. This is the gift most likely to be worn before she leaves your house.

14. A pencil box with colours

₹50 to ₹150 each · Best for: school-age girls. Pencils, an eraser, a sharpener and a small box of crayons. Parents thank you for this one, because it is used on Monday morning.

15. A keychain with her name

₹249 to ₹399 each · Best for: when the girls are your nieces and neighbours' daughters, and you know their names. It goes on a school bag and tells hers apart from thirty others. First name only. We make this.

16. Bangles and a bindi packet

₹30 to ₹80 each · Best for: the traditional choice. Buy children's sizes. Metal or lac bangles are safer than glass for girls under five.

17. A small steel tiffin or plate

₹80 to ₹250 each · Best for: families who like to give something lasting. Many families serve the prasad in a steel plate or box that the child takes home. It is the oldest version of a reusable return gift.

18. A picture book or colouring book

₹40 to ₹150 each · Best for: ages four to eight. A book of stories about the Goddess, or a plain colouring book with a few crayons. It keeps nine children quiet while the puris are fried.

19. A handmade cloth pouch for the gift

₹30 to ₹100 each · Best for: putting it all together. A small potli or zip pouch stitched from bright fabric holds the dakshina and the gift, and becomes her coin purse afterwards. Better than a plastic bag in every way.

Navratri return gifts for guests

A return gift thanks guests who came for your puja, haldi-kumkum or golu. In South Indian homes this is the thamboolam: betel leaves, a coconut or fruit, kumkum and turmeric, often with a small gift. Keep it light, and the same for everyone.

20. A pair of hand-painted diyas

₹40 to ₹150 a pair · Best for: any number of guests. They will be lit within three weeks, at Diwali. Buy from a local potter and you will have the widest choice at the lowest price.

21. A small decorated kumkum box

₹50 to ₹200 each · Best for: a haldi-kumkum gathering. Hand-painted wooden or metal boxes are traditional, useful and small enough to give thirty of.

22. A mini artificial flower bunch

₹199 to ₹399 each · Best for: a smaller gathering of close friends. A bunch that needs no vase and no water, tied with a ribbon and a handwritten tag. We make this.

23. A handkerchief with an initial

₹199 to ₹349 each · Best for: a group of ten or fewer, when you know everyone's name. One embroidered letter each. Order early, because every initial is stitched separately. We make this.

24. A hand-printed jute or cotton bag

₹60 to ₹200 each · Best for: putting the thamboolam in. A block-printed bag is reused for the vegetable market for a year, which a plastic cover is not.

Navratri gifts for colleagues and employees

Office Navratri is usually one afternoon: traditional dress, a colour, a garba round in the cafeteria. A small gift per person is enough. Save the larger budget for Diwali, three weeks later.

25. A name keychain for each person

₹249 to ₹399 each · Best for: teams of 5 to 30. One design, a different name on each. For a set this size, send the names two weeks ahead in a typed list. We make this.

26. A desk diya or tealight holder

₹80 to ₹250 each · Best for: large offices. Small, neutral and suitable for everyone, whatever they celebrate. Add a printed card with the team's name.

27. A prize for the best-dressed

₹400 to ₹900 · Best for: the colour-of-the-day contest. An everlasting bouquet or a personalised frame is a better prize than a voucher, because the winner takes it home and it gets a place in the house. We make this.

For ten or more pieces, send the quantity, the budget per person and the date through our corporate gifting enquiry form. If you are planning Diwali gifts for the team at the same time, our guide to handcrafted corporate gifts in India covers budgets, GST and timelines.

Dussehra gift ideas

Dussehra, on Tuesday 20 October 2026, marks the end of Navratri. It is counted among the most auspicious days of the year for starting something new, so gifts for a new home, a new vehicle or a new business fit well. In Maharashtra, people also exchange apta leaves as a symbol of gold.

28. A keychain for a new vehicle

₹299 to ₹449 · Best for: anyone taking delivery of a car or a scooter on Dussehra, as many families do. Their name, or the date. It is on the key from the first ride. We make this.

29. A photo frame for a new home

₹699 to ₹1,299 · Best for: a griha pravesh on or around Dussehra. One family photograph with the date they moved in. Send the photo at full size, not forwarded from a chat. We make this.

30. An everlasting arrangement for a new shop or office

₹499 to ₹1,299 · Best for: a friend opening a business. Fresh bouquets on an opening day are thrown away within the week. An everlasting arrangement stays on the counter. We make this.

Navratri gift ideas by budget

What to skip

A few things we would leave out:

• Sweets and snacks for people who are fasting. Rules differ in every home. If you must take food, take fruit.
• Plastic toys for Kanya Pujan. They break by evening. A pencil box costs the same and lasts the term.
• Different gifts for different children. Nine girls will compare, and one will cry.
• Leather. Many families avoid it during Navratri. A cloth pouch is the safe choice.
• A rushed personalised order. A name made in a hurry without a proof is how spelling mistakes happen. If time is short, buy ready-made and write the tag yourself.

How to order a personalised gift in time

1. Type the names. Send them as text, exactly as they should appear. For a set, send one list.
2. Check the design proof letter by letter before you approve it. Ask a second person to read it.
3. Give an address and a phone number that will be answered. Couriers are busy in festival weeks.
4. Add gift wrap and a note if it is going straight to the person.

You can see how our orders work on the home page, browse pieces that can carry a name or start with gifts under ₹500. If you are dressing by the chart this year, our Navratri 2026 colours, day by day has the full list. For the festival that follows, see 40 handmade Diwali gift ideas.