Diwali Decoration Brouhaha

Many of my whatsapp groups are abuzz with pictures of Diwali themed train in Singapore. Lot of praise and lot of admiration for this little country for celebrating Diwali. There is a sense of pride that "our" festival is being celebrated far and wide. 

http://indianexpress.com/article/trending/trending-globally/singapore-gets-its-first-diwali-themed-train-3087474/

There are some others who have gone one step ahead and shared pics of desi stations and railways and airport termini which don't have any Diwali themed decorations, yet, to bring out the contrast. That is the fun part - also little uncalled for. 

Indians are around 9% of Singapore population. And one way to look at the episode is, they are celebrating plurality in their country. Couple of years back there was a Barack Obama video wishing for Diwali; and Indians are just about 1% in US. Diwali, or Deepawali is celebrated around the world, and our desi diaspora has been a wonderful brand ambassadors. 

These are signs of an inclusive developed country with mature administrators and citizens. 

What i wish to highlight in this blog is our loss of diversity. In the race for homogenisation, urbanisation and being part of popular narrative, so many of our cultural identities, languages, dialects, festivals, occasions have gone extinct. We "had" such rich culture of song and dance, celebrating various life stages. Alas, even our villages which were the last bastions of cultural treasure have succumbed to the trappings of urbanisation. 

So, exporting our major festival is good thing. But losing our cultural diversity is very sad. Many many festivals, or different ways of celebrating the same festival, now no longer exist, because they didnt fit in the mainstream narrative, or the practitioners were ridiculed, or worse, killed. 

Yes, please be proud that Diwali is celebrated globally; and also remember, that there were many different ways of celebrating Diwali - that no longer happen. 

Wish you an Irrelevant Diwali?

In our pre-liberalisation era, Diwali was long awaited festival for many reasons. My parents actually used to get a bonus and gifts from their employers. For my sister and me, Diwali meant new clothes, new shoes, lots of fun goodies to eat, going to relatives / them coming over, exchanging gifts - and again, special Diwali eats. I remember purchasing cloth for getting clothes stitched one month before Diwali... going to the tailor, getting measured and reminding him multiple times to keep the clothes ready before Diwali day. I have fond memories of nights when my mother and grandmother would prepare 'faral' items after the days chores were over. Me, sitting in the kitchen waiting to pop some fresh items as the official taster! 

Everyone we knew planned expenses around the festival. It was THE big thing of the year. For a country transitioning from agrarian economy to urban industrial areas, the festival (like many others) meant to connect us our socio-economic-cultural heritage. 

All our festivals have roots in the natural calendar. We had summer weddings because once the spring harvest was done, there was cash inflow. Post wedding season, there were a slew of occasions lined up for the newly married girl to visit her parental home - satya narayan pooja in shravan, rakha bandhan, janma-ashtami, vat pournima, kojagiri pournima, Ganesh chaturthi, Dussera, and the first Diwali, where she brought her husband along. 

Over the last few years, my sentiments about most festivals have become more and more practical. The question that's bothering me is has our perennial prosperity dampened enthusiasm towards most festivals, especially Diwali? Does having purchasing power all year long make these festivals any less special?

I buy new clothes, shoes, gadgets any time of the year. I don’t need an occasion to eat out, celebrate. The Diwali special eats are available in sweet shops. The "special-ness" of Diwali has certainly diminished for me, perhaps making it irrelevant.

Perhaps I am confused between reminiscing about the Diwali holidays and comparing it with our present day grind. Perhaps it is disillusionment with the way the festivals are celebrated. Perhaps it is a reminder to make the most of these occasions to socialise...

I am not bearish about festivals and festivities. People should continue to do things that make them happy. Yes, I will continue to light lamps, and eat the goodies that friends and relatives bring, and exchange gifts. These are all indicators of the fun times. The 'happiness' symptoms are all there - just feel that the soul is missing.