Diwali in Two Perspectives

Photo from Pexels by Yan Krukau

Zoe Dickert & Aashi Iyengar

Diwali, known as the festival of lights, symbolizes the victory of light over darkness in Indian culture. Religiously, Diwali celebrates the Hindu god Rama's eventual defeat of the evil spirit Ravana and his triumphant return to his home.

Diwali celebrations typically last 5 days. This festive holiday is usually celebrated by families lighting the inside and outside of homes with rows of lamps or diyas. Celebrations also include lighting fireworks and sparklers. 

Many people host parties so they can gather amongst their friends and celebrate Diwali. At these parties, people typically dress in colorful clothing. Women often wear elegant saris made from a variety of materials, such as silk, crepe, chiffon and velvet. Young girls wear brightly decorated costumes called lehengas. 

Aashi’s Experience

I have been celebrating this holiday from a young age since I was a little girl. I still remember being a little girl, holding my dad's hand as he held a sparkler in the other. Every year, my family lights sparklers and celebrates this holiday to the fullest.

My favorite part of every Diwali, besides the company, is the cuisine. There are so many different foods to eat on this holiday! My favorite snack would be samosas. A samosa is a triangle shaped pastry with filling like spiced potatoes, onions, and peas. When I bite into a samosa, my taste buds get overwhelmed with flavor and spice. My other favorite food would be curd rice. Curd rice is yogurt and rice mixed together, and it is a nice, delicious cool down food.

At the celebration I attended this year, my friends and I were given the opportunity to dance. We rechoreographed a dance originally made for two people and turned it into a three person dance. Learning it in two days was challenging, but after a lot of time practicing, we were able to perfect the final dance. At the party, we completed the dance, and it turned out really well! Everyone was cheering for us after every challenging move, and we got a standing ovation at the end. Most importantly, we had a lot of fun and it added to the festivities.

Diwali, and the memories it creates, is something I look forward to every year.

Zoe’s Experience

Just about a week ago I got to celebrate Diwali for the first time with a few of my closest friends. The night of the celebration was filled with unique variations of food, clothing, and dance. It was an amazing experience that I can’t wait to share. 

To begin, during any holiday, food is an important way through which people express their culture and beliefs. At Diwali, I got to test out a new side of my taste buds, and enjoy flavorful and spice filled dishes! 

One of my favorite foods that I tried was the Biryani. I remembered having it before at an Indian restaurant that was next to my old dance studio. My parents and I have eaten there a few times after practice, and I always ordered what I then called “spicy rice.” At Diwali I learned that the “spicy rice” or Biryani consists of rice, meat, some sort of marinade, and a few different spices. 

As previously mentioned, everything that I tried at Diwali was very flavorful. This was a nice contrast to what I normally have at large family dinners. Where at which I normally eat a bread roll with butter, some sort of fruit or vegetable, mashed potatoes, etc. The food I have at these family events becomes repetitive at times as it’s mainly what I eat for dinner anyways. Enjoying some new dishes at Diwali which I’d never had before was definitely an experience I’ll never forget!

Additionally, before the event, my friends told me that some of the food at Diwali would be spicy. Even though many dishes were fairly hot, they were also delicious. Personally I am not used to trying spicier foods very often because I’m not used to that kind of flavor. Nevertheless, everything there smelt and tasted amazing. For those who do enjoy a good kick and have a love of spicier foods I recommend Samosas, Aloo Tikki, or the Biryani. 

Next, there is the matter of clothing which was personally one of my favorite parts of Diwali. Before attending, I changed into what is called a lehenga. Weeks prior to the holiday, my friend found one for me so that I’d be prepared. It included a greyish-blue ankle length skirt decorated with intricate golden flowers. The top matched, with some bright pink mesh on the sleeves. The Dupatta (a long fancy scarf) was pink like the sleeves of the top and draped around my left shoulder and waist.

I was also able to borrow some of my friend's mom's jewelry. She had an entire collection stored in a large jewelry box which we sorted through. I ended up choosing three bangles for each wrist. The two on the outside were golden, and the one in the middle was silver. Along with those, I wore a ruby necklace to match. 

After putting on the jewelry, I was told that I must get my ears pierced! This is because girls normally wear fancy earrings that match the other jewelry they have on. Both of my friends had gotten their ears pierced when they were young. The earrings they wore were golden and engrained with little jewels. As for the Dupatta my friend’s mom was careful with how she draped it around me. There were specific areas on the dress which the Dupatta was able to connect to or be tucked into based on how I wanted to wear it. In the end, I had it draped over my left shoulder and tucked into the waist of my skirt.

At Diwali, I loved seeing all the lehengas the girls wore. Each seemed to match that girl's personality in one way or another. Colors ranging from dark blues and reds, to vibrant yellows and greens appeared to twirl about the room.

Last is the matter of dancing. Beforehand, my friend who has partaken in Indian style dance since she was little, taught me some of the dances we’d get to perform. At that point, I was well prepared for Diwali. I’d have to say that my favorite dance we learned was for a song called  “Gallan Goodiyan.” In the dance, we punched towards the ground twice, and then “high-fived” the air twice, repeating these moves continuously. The other girls and I danced in a circle together while this song played. Even the dads joined in. 

Before everyone began to dance, my friend’s dance group performed for us. I remember the girls practicing beforehand, rehearsing their moves in the bathroom before going out in front of their audience. The routine seemed to be very important to my friend, and the other girls she was dancing with, especially because they were exposed to Indian dance at a young age. Knowing that they’d worked so hard on the routine made the performance even more exciting to watch! 

Diwali was a unique and exciting experience, and the best part was being able to enjoy it with some of my best friends. I got to try new food, dress up, and dance the night away. The memories made that night were unforgettable, and I’ll always remember my first night of Diwali with a smile.