Deepavali

Deepavali, popularly known as the "festival of lights", is an important five-day festival in Hinduism, Jainism & Sikhism , occurring between mid-October and mid-November. For Hindus, this festival is the most important festival of the year & is celebrated in families by performing traditional activities together in their homes. Deepavali is an official holiday in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myammar, Mauritius, Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, Suriname, Malaysia and Fiji.

Deepavali involves the lighting of small clay lamps filled with oil to signify the triumph of good over evil. During this festival, all the celebrants wear new clothes & share sweets & snacks with family members & friends. 

By lighting the oil lamps, we are also thanking the gods for the happiness, knowledge, peace & wealth that we have received.

Preparation for Deepavali usually starts at least two to three weeks before the festival. Disposal of old furniture, bringing in of newly purchased items for the home, buying of new clothes & baking of cookies are all part of the preparations.

Cornflakes cookie; loved by many.

        

Pineapple tart, also known as Kueh tart.

 

Most of the decorative items that will be used to add 'brightness' to the home, such as greeting cards, colourful lights, fire crackers, lamps & rice powder to make kolams, are usually purchased from Little India, Singapore, also known as "Tekka Market" to many. During the festive season of Deepavali, Little India is lighted up with colourful lights & beautiful structures & mannequins dressed in Saris. 

Little India, Singapore (Tekka Market) 

145 Syed Alwi Road, Little India, Singapore

To get there by mrt: alight at North-east line-NE7

Speaking of Kolam, it is usually drawn on the morning of Deepavali, outside the house of the celebrants. In the oldern days, it was only drawn using white flour(mixed with water). These days, coloured rice is used as well. This enhances the beauty of the kolam, as it adds colour & boost to the eyes. 

 Coloured rice, usually used in bright colours.

Pic 1: Drawing the outline of the desired shape of kolam.  

 Pic 2: Adding coloured rice to fill in the empty spaces.

there you go, with just 30mins of fun & laughter with another loved one, a beautiful creation is made.

Knowing Indians, we love food that has rich taste. & an example of such a food is definitely, spicy food. Spices and aromatics are the very heart of Indian cooking. They have been used since ancient times. They were mentioned in the ancient Hindu scriptures called the Vedas, ancient Egyptian papyruses and the Old Testament. 

The basic food during the festival of lights, are : Firstly, briyani rice. Briyani is made using basmati rice, mixing with the various spices of indian culture. Also, during a Deepavali opehouse, another must not miss is the mutton mix. The chicken sambal, achar, papadam are few of the basic food you can see in one's home during the festival.

Deepavali lasts for a long period of time, usually up to a month. During the month of Deepavali, relatives & friends invite each other to one another's house, to spend time & catch up with each other. Indians believe that by giving food to others, the gratefulness will help us once we have passed on. 

since it is the festival of lights, what's a festival, without its lights! After dinner, the youngsters gather & have fun playing with fire crackers. 

 After all the firecrackers have been used up, we get back into the house, sit around the elders & chit chat. Catching up with the family & friends can be a better feeling that you can imagine. Snapping pictures of memories, listening to music & muching on the baked cookies, deepavali is a festival that also bonds the people in your life together with each other.

Do remember to visit Little India, during the Deepavali period & grab the must-not-miss sales on almost every single thing!

For more info on Little India, Singapore, please visit http://wikitravel.org/en/Singapore/Little_India