Indian Festival Sweets: Laddoo, Barfi, Jalebi and the Words for Them

By the Hindi Haveli team · October 28, 2026

In India, good news always comes with something sweet. A new job, a new baby, a wedding, an exam result, a festival: each one is a reason to open a box of sweets and pass it around. There is even a Hindi phrase for it: मुँह मीठा करना (munh meethaa karnaa), "to sweeten the mouth."

This guide is a friendly tour of Indian sweets, called मिठाई (mithaaee). You will learn their names in Hindi, which festivals they belong to, and a few phrases to use when you offer or accept them.

What makes Indian sweets different

Many Indian sweets are made from milk that has been slowly cooked down until it is thick and rich. Others are made from flour, lentils, nuts, coconut or semolina. Common flavors include cardamom, saffron, rose water and pistachio. Some sweets are fried and soaked in syrup, while others are pressed, rolled or set like fudge.

Many are also decorated with a thin, shiny sheet of edible silver called वर्क (vark). It is traditionally made by beating silver into ultra-thin leaves, and today it is commonly made by machine.

The basic words

मिठाई (mithaaee): sweets, a sweet
मीठा (meethaa): sweet (as a taste); also dessert
हलवाई (halvaaee): a sweet maker, a sweet shop owner
खोया (khoyaa): milk cooked down to a thick, soft solid
चाशनी (chaashnee): sugar syrup

The sweets everyone knows

Laddoo

लड्डू (laDDoo) are round balls of sweetness, and they are everywhere. Besan laddoos are made from roasted chickpea flour and ghee. Motichoor laddoos are made of tiny fried drops of batter, pressed together into a golden ball. Til laddoos use sesame and jaggery and are made in January. Laddoos are offered at temples, shared at births and weddings, and handed out to celebrate any happy news.

There is even a Hindi saying: मन में लड्डू फूटना (man men laDDoo phooTnaa), "laddoos bursting in the heart," which means feeling secretly thrilled.

Barfi

बर्फ़ी (barfee) is a fudge-like sweet, usually cut into squares or diamonds. The name comes from बर्फ़ (barf), snow or ice, perhaps because the plain milk barfi is white like snow. Popular kinds include coconut barfi, pistachio barfi and काजू कतली (kaajoo katlee), thin diamonds of cashew paste, often topped with silver vark.

Jalebi

जलेबी (jalebee) are bright orange spirals of fermented batter, fried until crisp and soaked in syrup. They are eaten hot, for breakfast in many North Indian towns, sometimes with milk or yogurt. On Independence Day and Republic Day, many schools and offices in India hand out jalebis.

Gulab jamun

गुलाब जामुन (gulaab jaamun) are soft, dark balls of khoya and flour, fried and soaked in a syrup flavored with cardamom and rose water. गुलाब (gulaab) means rose, and जामुन (jaamun) is a dark purple fruit they resemble. They are served warm, often at weddings.

Rasgulla

रसगुल्ला (rasgullaa) are spongy white balls of fresh cheese, cooked in light syrup. They are especially loved in West Bengal and Odisha, and both states have long debated where they were first made.

The classics

लड्डू (laDDoo): a round sweet ball
बर्फ़ी (barfee): milk fudge in squares or diamonds
जलेबी (jalebee): syrupy orange spirals
गुलाब जामुन (gulaab jaamun): soft syrup-soaked balls
रसगुल्ला (rasgullaa): spongy cheese balls in syrup
खीर (kheer): rice pudding with milk and cardamom

Which sweet for which festival?

Different festivals have their own favorite sweets. Here is a simple guide:

Diwali: Boxes of mixed sweets are exchanged with friends and neighbors. Kaju katli, laddoos, barfi and soan papdi are favorites.
Holi: गुझिया (gujhiyaa), a half-moon pastry stuffed with khoya and nuts, and a cool almond drink called thandai.
Ganesh Chaturthi: मोदक (modak), dumplings filled with coconut and jaggery, said to be Lord Ganesha's favorite.
Eid al-Fitr: सेवइयाँ (sevaiyaan), sweet vermicelli with milk and nuts, offered to every guest.
Makar Sankranti: sesame and jaggery sweets like til laddoos and gajak.
Raksha Bandhan: sisters feed brothers a sweet after tying the rakhi, often a laddoo or barfi.
Christmas in India: plum cake in many homes, and in Goa, a tray of homemade sweets called kuswar.
Onam: payasam, a pudding of rice or lentils with milk or coconut milk and jaggery.
Durga Puja: Bengali favorites like sandesh, made from fresh cheese, and mishti doi, sweet set yogurt.

Festival sweets

गुझिया (gujhiyaa): Holi's stuffed pastry
मोदक (modak): a sweet dumpling for Ganesh Chaturthi
सेवइयाँ (sevaiyaan): sweet vermicelli for Eid
पेड़ा (peRaa): a soft round milk sweet, often offered at temples
हलवा (halvaa): a soft sweet of semolina, carrot or lentils

Offering and accepting sweets

Sharing sweets comes with its own polite phrases:

Sweet phrases

मुँह मीठा कीजिए (munh meethaa keejie): Please have a sweet (to celebrate)
एक और लीजिए (ek aur leejie): Please take one more
बहुत मीठा है! (bahut meethaa hai!): It's very sweet!
किस ख़ुशी में? (kis khushee men?): What's the happy occasion?

That last one is fun. If someone hands you a sweet out of the blue, you can ask किस ख़ुशी में?, literally "in what happiness?", and they will tell you their good news.

Etiquette tip: in India, it is polite to take at least a small piece when sweets are offered, even if you are full. If you cannot eat sugar, a smile and a hand on the heart with नहीं, शुक्रिया (naheen, shukriyaa), "no, thank you," is perfectly fine.

Buying sweets outside India

In the US, UK, Canada and Australia, Indian grocery stores and sweet shops sell fresh and boxed mithai, especially around Diwali. Many shops let you build a mixed box. Try asking for एक डिब्बा मिठाई (ek Dibbaa mithaaee), "one box of sweets," and name a few you want.

Make one simple sweet at home

Coconut laddoos are one of the easiest Indian sweets to make with children:

Mix 2 cups of unsweetened desiccated coconut with about 1 cup of sweetened condensed milk in a pan.
Stir over low heat for 5 to 7 minutes, until the mixture comes together and leaves the sides of the pan.
Add a pinch of ground cardamom.
Let it cool until you can handle it, then roll into small balls and roll each one in a little more coconut.

As you roll, count in Hindi: एक, दो, तीन, चार... You will have a plate of laddoos and a counting lesson at the same time.

Play the puzzle of the month

Every month, we post one Hindi word puzzle that is free for everyone. It is a sweet little break for your brain, and a fun way to practice words like मिठाई, लड्डू and बर्फ़ी. Give it a try after your next box of sweets.

मुँह मीठा कीजिए!

Your turn: try it free

Every month one Hindi word puzzle is free for everyone. No sign-up needed to play. Play the puzzle of the month