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You are here: Home / Holidays / Diwali / Diwali Moments

Diwali Moments

Avatar of Shruti Acharya

Shruti Acharya | November 12, 2010 | 31 Comments

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Diwali brings back myriad memories from my childhood. Of school holidays, trips to our ancestral home, meeting my kakas (Uncles), kakus (Aunties) and the 11 cousins. Now my dad has 3 younger brothers and 2 sisters and every year we would make it a point to meet up at my grandfather’s house.

Diwali meant aarti (a ritual of worship, a part of puja, in which light from wicks soaked in ghee or camphor is offered to one or more deities) at the crack of dawn, of oil massages, of having a bath with uthna ( powdered mixture of sandalwood and some other perfumed salts) and shikakai ( soap nut)… wearing new clothes..

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Diwali meant eating breakfast at one kaka’s house, lunch at another and dinner at yet another. Everyone would cook together, eat together on banana leaves.. innumerable chai sessions with public demands for chivda, Bhajji, vade, thalipeeth, holige, kattin saaru, soppu saaru,  Bhakri & badnekai Palya (Diwali Sweets & savories) . The amazing faral – chakli, kodbole, shankarpalis. Of kaituttu and baituttu under the moon light..

Laughter that could be heard two streets down..

Diwali Food

Diwali meant making Diwali cards, and sending and receiving postcards from our family overseas..

Child Magazine Diwali 8

Diwali meant making jhendu (marigold) and shevanti garlands adorning the courtyards.. each cousin then trying to outdo the other finally leaving the courtyard covered with colorful rangolis and other artistic designs..

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Diwali meant, spending the evening curled up around my grandmother, listening to the stories from the Ramayana.
Diwali meant bursting crackers with the whole community.. The elder ones hand holding the younger ones and sometimes the reverse..

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Diwali meant a grand laxmi pooja at my uncle’s foundry.. and dad’s factory too.. It was a time to meet the workers, give them sweets, gifts, This used to mean a big deal to us kids.. Cos a factory visit during Diwali guaranteed cult status.. we felt important and humbled at the same time..

Diwali meant building Shivaji Killas [ Fort] with Shivaji sitting on top of a huge mud hill.. cardboard forts were built.. cars, carriages, soldiers with ammunition guarded the fortress, The miniature city would be abuzz with cattle tilling the [mustard seed] fields..horses running wild.. tigers and bears. Followed by visits to every street corner to find the best one.

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Image from one of my fav blog friends Neelum  via

and how can we forget the  – The lamps.. innumerable clay diyas that were painstakingly painted, Akash kandils ( lanterns)

Diwali diya

We also had a very special tradition of making a huge paper lantern. Each member would be involved in cutting, patching and sticking.. Finally after all dinner was had .. 4 of us would stand on top of a chair holding a corner while my uncle would slowly hold a mashaal (flambeau) under it till the lantern was filled with smoke that would make it lighter.. and then magic would happen .. slowly but steadily the lantern would rise higher and higher till it would become a tiny speck in the night sky..

Brighten up your Diwali with a stunning DIY Paper Lantern that brings not just light but lots of color into your life as well, this festive season!

As each one of us watched in wonder, Diwali gave us the gift of togetherness, happiness, teamwork, connecting to our roots and most importantly of memories that would last us a lifetime

*I’m from Belgaum. So we have mixed celebrations karnataka style & maharashtra style.

Edited to add – we won the contest at blogadda. Here’s what the judge – Bhavna had to say
As I read through your post and saw the beautiful pictures, I felt as if I have been invited to your ancestral home to celebrate Diwali with your family! I enjoyed the very well structured, visual journey through the entire day, starting with oil massages to family lunch to rangoli making and finally the lighting of diyas. I loved the part about Shivaji Killas and the huge paper lantern – traditions not known in the northern part of the country. Thanks for sharing your family celebrations with us.

Thank you Blogadda, Myntra & Bhavna.

Filed Under: Diwali, Decorate, Festivals of India, Home Decor, Teen Crafts & Activities Tagged With: craft activities to do with kids, Diwali – Art craft activities to do with kids, India Crafts, Lil P and Me

Avatar of Shruti Acharya

About Shruti Acharya

Shruti is a writer, photographer, DIY lover, passionate homemaker, and the chief dreamer at ArtsyCraftsyMom.com . Shruti lives in Bangalore, India with her husband and daughter. She loves showcasing fun art activities, crafts for kids, celebrations, childrens books & all the craziness that is India.

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Comments

  1. Avatar of SGSG says

    November 12, 2010 at 8:50 pm

    Nice post. Banana leaves with food make me hungry now. (Anyway it is 12:20 PM now – lunch time.)

    Reply
  2. Avatar of bitsofchocolatebitsofchocolate says

    November 12, 2010 at 7:09 pm

    The Rangolis are very pretty. Thanks for sharing a slice of your memories !

    Reply
  3. Avatar of SandsSands says

    November 12, 2010 at 7:17 pm

    such a lovely post Shruti. Diwalis are indeed special festivals that for some reason makes us reminisce 🙂

    Reply
  4. Avatar of PreeOccupiedPreeOccupied says

    November 12, 2010 at 9:56 pm

    Beautiful photos. Who is that little girl joining her hands? She is so adorable.

    Reply
  5. Avatar of pangsofsenselessnesspangsofsenselessness says

    November 12, 2010 at 10:27 pm

    Beautiful post, Shruthi. Took me back to my childhood festival days! Thank you! 🙂

    Reply
  6. Avatar of AniAni says

    November 13, 2010 at 12:25 am

    wow wonderful pics and such a lovely post Shruti..

    Reply
  7. Avatar of Patricia TorresPatricia Torres says

    November 13, 2010 at 5:19 am

    oh what wonderful pics.. Shurti.. That sure looks like an awesome.. delightful.. Diwali for sure.. A memory that will last forever!!

    Reply
  8. Avatar of MindfulMeandererMindfulMeanderer says

    November 13, 2010 at 6:25 am

    @PV: 🙂 I don’t have any old pics. If i did u could almost hear the laughter coming out of them 🙂
    @Sands: Yes diwali does make us all dreamy
    @SG: LOL. yup i miss the banana leaf food too.
    @Pree: thats my daughter 🙂
    @pangs: Hey! welcome here. I’m glad i could do that to u.. Huggs.
    @Ani: Thank you.
    @Patty: The diwali moments are traditions carried on from childhood and now I see my daughter enjoying the same.

    Reply
  9. Avatar of NivNiv says

    November 13, 2010 at 7:47 am

    wow!
    wish I could visit your childhood memories:)
    your Diwali sounds fantabulous!

    Reply
  10. Avatar of MohiniMohini says

    November 13, 2010 at 4:57 pm

    What a lovely post sis! You are gifted. The joy your article brought was almost same as what we used to experience those days 🙂

    Reply
  11. Avatar of GBGB says

    November 14, 2010 at 9:19 pm

    Shruti, this was such a lovely, heartwarming post. Your daughter is adorable. and your memories are magical–thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  12. Avatar of R's MomR's Mom says

    November 15, 2010 at 4:15 am

    Wow! what a lovely post 🙂

    Reply
  13. Avatar of purplehomespurplehomes says

    November 15, 2010 at 6:17 am

    what a beautiful-love filled post. Enjoyed reading every bit of it.

    Reply
  14. Avatar of SwaramSwaram says

    November 15, 2010 at 6:18 am

    Lovely lovely post and I just can’t get enuf of that pic of Li’lP praying. A million dollar shot 🙂 🙂

    Reply
  15. Avatar of RekhaRekha says

    November 15, 2010 at 6:00 am

    Beautiful post Shruti, vry true, Diwali always takes your memories back to those cherished moments, Thanks for linking in the Diwali Dhamka.

    Reply
  16. Avatar of BikramjitBikramjit says

    November 15, 2010 at 11:39 am

    all that food my oh my and you did not invite me now thats bad

    🙂

    looks like you had a great time 🙂

    Bikram’s

    Reply
  17. Avatar of PriyaPriya says

    November 15, 2010 at 8:31 am

    Beautiful post Shruti!! the pics are awesome. N as Swaram says, the pic of LilP praying is priceless 🙂

    Reply
  18. Avatar of ಪುಟ್ಟಿಯ ಅಮ್ಮಪುಟ್ಟಿಯ ಅಮ್ಮ says

    November 15, 2010 at 4:56 pm

    Lovely photos, beautiful rangolis and wowww miss baaLe ele ooTa:((
    That shivaji fort thing is very new to me, always to know about new practises!!
    Cheers
    Roopa

    Reply
  19. Avatar of ShankariShankari says

    November 15, 2010 at 7:05 pm

    Lovely post indeed Shruti. Deepavali is definitely a fun festival and apt for large family gatherings. Last year we were in India for Deepavali, it was the first we attended since we got married 10 years ago. The whole experience was so nice and we are still so nostalgic about it 🙂

    Thanks for sharing your memories with us. I loved the last bit where the entire family makes the big lantern. Must have been so magical to watch it float away!!!

    Reply
  20. Avatar of JanhaviJanhavi says

    November 17, 2010 at 9:02 am

    Just awesome re Akka….. Miss those days!!!!!1

    Reply
  21. Avatar of AnonymousAnonymous says

    November 18, 2010 at 11:42 am

    mus say such a lovely write up…..

    Shruti,I’m not sure in which post I got to read about traditional south Indian way of making tilak…by spreading lemon drops and turmeric on copper plate… I think that I read about that in your post itself…..

    I have been scrolling all the Diwali Carnival enetries on various blogs including Colorsdekor, keybunch ….all day long again n again

    I’d be grateful if you or any other person could please leme know the traditional method of making tilak…..

    Reply
  22. Avatar of ObsessivemomObsessivemom says

    November 18, 2010 at 5:09 pm

    Lovely post Shruti… the pictures make all the difference. Great blog. Why oh why did I find it so late!! Wonder how many more good things I’m missing in life.:-)

    Reply
  23. Avatar of EmreenEmreen says

    November 18, 2010 at 8:42 pm

    A huge paper lantern…!! Thats awesome.. Have never heard of this before…!!! Lovely pics…!! How I miss having a full meal on a banana leaf…?!!

    Thanks for linking to the blog party …!! Hope to see you participating for Xmas and New Year too…!

    Reply
  24. Avatar of ArundhatiArundhati says

    November 19, 2010 at 4:36 am

    Speechless. Thanks for sharing those magical moments from the past.

    The pic of lil P praying is beautiful. Kala tikka and wishing that peaceful expression, the innocence, the belief stays with her forever.

    God bless you all

    Reply
  25. Avatar of MindfulMeandererMindfulMeanderer says

    November 21, 2010 at 5:39 am

    @Niv – 🙂 it sure was fun
    @Mohini – Huggs. Suddenly I feel the urge to be a child again back in M kaka’s house
    @GB – Thank you. Lil P loves Diwali
    @R’s Mom – Huggs. Thanks
    @Rekha – Esp for us cousins I think Diwali was really exciting
    @purplehomes – Thank you 🙂
    @Swaram – Isn’t she cute. She evens bows to a candle. LOL
    @Priya – Thank u.
    @Bikramjit – LOL. Aajao we’ll treat you to that scrumptious food.
    @ಪುಟ್ಟಿಯ ಅಮ್ಮ – its very popular in maharashtra. Since Belgaum is on the border same customs prevail there too.
    @Shankari – Ohhh Diwali with family must have been so much fun.
    @Janhavi – Hehe. I love ur pic in the pony tails standing next to ur dad.
    @Anonymous – Sorry. I have no idea. But heard something like that. Never tried.
    @Obsessivemom – Welcome here 🙂
    @Emreen – That was a custom in the family that we followed for nearly 15 years without fail.
    @Arundhati – Thank you 🙂 Huggs. Kids make it so much more special.

    Reply
  26. Avatar of monikamanchandamonikamanchanda says

    November 26, 2010 at 9:19 am

    oh this was a very well deserving post, the judge is right I was transpoted right to ur village 🙂

    congrats on winning

    Reply
  27. Avatar of ptccrackersptccrackers says

    August 28, 2018 at 6:01 pm

    Nice post, The gifts are very interactive. Kids Love to see.

    Reply
  28. Avatar of Riya SharmaRiya Sharma says

    September 24, 2018 at 12:53 pm

    Well said Shruti in this post, I really like this article. Thanks for the sharing.

    Reply

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