From ₹1.18 lakh order in Bengaluru to 200 biryanis a minute: What India ordered this March

From big-ticket individual orders to sharp spikes during peak festival hours, March offered a clear snapshot of how India ate, according to data from Swiggy.

The trends show steady growth during Navratri, a surge in demand on Eid, and a jump in dining out as the IPL began, with ordering patterns shifting across cities and occasions through the month.

Navratri sees a steady jump in orders

During Navratri (March 19–27, 2026), orders on Swiggy grew 25% compared to Navratri in April 2025. The highest activity was on March 22, when 4,800 orders were placed at 8:06 pm, according to the company's release. 

Simple fasting meals remained the top choice. Sabudana Khichdi was the most ordered dish, with around 222 orders every hour. It was followed by Sabudana Vada at 156 orders per hour and Vrat Thali at nearly 120 orders per hour.

Among cities, Bengaluru, Delhi and Gurgaon led demand, while places like Bareilly, Bhopal and Dehradun also saw strong participation.

The company also pointed to large festive orders. In one case, a customer in Delhi spent ₹11,980 on 10 Navratri Special Vrat Thalis, 10 Special Veg Thalis and 20 glasses of Masala Chaas.

Eid demand led by biryani

On Eid al-Fitr (March 21, 2026), biryani dominated orders across the country. Swiggy said an average of over 200 biryani orders were placed every minute.

Desserts were also popular, with Gulab Jamun seeing around 11 orders per minute.

The biggest order came from Noida, where a customer spent ₹38,165. In Mumbai, another customer ordered three large packs of Mutton Biryani worth ₹15,866, enough to serve about 15 people.

Large cities such as Bengaluru, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai and Delhi saw high volumes. Cities like Thiruvananthapuram, Surat and Mangaluru also recorded strong demand, while Shillong, Agartala and Dibrugarh led among smaller markets.

IPL opening weekend boosts dining out

The start of IPL 2026 also pushed people to step out and dine. Swiggy said Dineout bookings during the opening weekend rose 31% compared to the first day of the 2025 season.

On March 28, bookings at restaurants screening matches were up more than 30% compared to the previous Saturday (March 21, 2026). Bookings for the 7 pm slot increased by 22.4%.

Group outings also increased. Bookings for groups of five or more rose by 24.8%, with the largest group booking being for 30 people in Bengaluru.

The city, which hosted the opening match, saw bookings rise by over 21 compared to the previous Saturday. Diners there saved more than ₹96 lakh through Swiggy Dineout. The next day, Mumbai users saved over ₹63 lakh.

The highest spend recorded on opening night was ₹1,18,973 by a customer in Bengaluru.

Holi orders travel on trains

Swiggy also saw growing use of its Food on Train service during Holi. Between February 28 and March 8, 2026, it delivered over 5,764 Holi-special orders across 1,381 long-distance trains.

Popular items included samosa, lassi and pyaaz kachori, showing that people preferred familiar festive food while travelling.

Jaipur was the top station, with every eighth order being a Holi special. The Kerala Express alone saw 780 orders.

In one case, a passenger on the Indore–Amritsar Express ordered 122 items in a single order, showing a rise in group orders during travel.