The Diwali That Was, Is, And Will Be...

Diwali.

Deepawali.

One Festival.

Two Salutations.

A Million Aspirations.

Infinite Celebrations.

The Festival.

Of Lights.

The festival of Diwali, was one exciting celebration for me, since years The lights adorning my house, plethora of relatives to visit, celebrate. The customary Diwali Puja, with the blissful chants, temple bells. The up-and-down of it, to arrange those lights aesthetically.  The up-and-down of it, for fascinating crackers, as kids. The retelling of the parable, the epic Ramayana.  The excitement of revamping the wardrobe. Of untying the glossy gift - wrap.  Of enjoying Diwali presents!
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That was how my Diwali was, as a kid.
And, that's how, it is, even today.
Why, didn't you notice the Dia above, adorning my blog-post, even?
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A line of Dias.
The literal meaning of Diwali, isn't it?
That's how my house, donned a new hat, for Diwali celebrations too, every single year.
Dias and those electronic lights, too, adorned every nook and corner of my house.
Not one single spot remain unlit! ^_^

The Diwali Of 2012.

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Over the years, it does bring back, an adrenaline rush, a requisite nostalgia...
To see the child in me, surface, dusting away the layers of maturity, for that day, that evening of celebration, even now. :)
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To see, how Diwali as a festival, has taken up new meaning, over the years.
For us, on a personal level, it's elating.
However, on the macro level, as a member of the Indian Society, it's disturbing.
You know why, don't you?
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It's the pivotal point of burning crackers.
How, we as a family, have refrained from polluting the environment, and adopted eco-friendly measures.

And, how, with each passing Diwali, the pollution levels of my city, and my Country, are alarming.

Not only the pollution, it pains me to see, how innocent children, are forced to work in such hazardous environments, for the sake of crackers.

It's pleasing however, that I've voiced my opinion and stopped burning my money, for the least! :)

I still remember how my elder brother had burnt his entire hand, very excitedly but also, very negligently, lighting an Anaar upside down, at the age of 10.

From that day on, Crackers were a NO inside the House. :)

So, now you know, that I've never burnt crackers, since age 6!

And, we've never looked back.

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For me, Diwali has already been a familial affair, and never have I stayed away from family, for any of my Celebrations. :D
For me, Diwali always meant spending time with my Mother, taking in her culinary expertise, for, the conventional sweets, which were sold in those sweet shops in the Market across the lane, we used to gleefully replicate at Home...
Sweets + Glee - Humongous Amounts Of Ghee => Joyous Indulgence. ^_^
You say it, and my Mother used to make it.
The Burfis. The Laddoos. The Gulab Jamuns. The Jalebis.
All Home Made! :)
So much so, that the Aunty's from the neighbourhood, too, used to savor them and even request her for a supposed 'Secret Recipe'. ^_^
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Even today, over an entire generation, Diwali, as a festival for Charu, has been an exciting as well as an enriching experience.

From the Dias.

To The Rangolis. To The Greetings. To The Puja. To The Gift Hampers.

The Ganesh Arti

Each Diwali, for her even, has been purely, very blissfully, a #GharWaliDiwali! :)
However, these Diwali's over the years, have been minimally pretentious.
And, maximally heartfelt.
I've stayed away from those people who 'you-know-why', make a public display of how Goddess Lakshmi has blessed them with elaborate riches...
And, for us, it has never been as elaborate. Only as much heartfelt as it could be.
No show - off strings attached! :)
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My Diwali has always been a #GharWaliDiwali.
This time too, it is a #GharWaliDiwali.
And, hopefully, it will always be, a #GharWaliDiwali.
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This post has been written as a part of Indi Happy Hours' #GharWaliDiwali in association with PepsiCo and IndiBlogger.
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