On 25 October 2014, Federation Square will be draped with the flamboyant colours and filled with the tantalising aroma and delightful sights and sounds of the Diwali Indian Festival. Diwali Festival will be sponsored and presented by the Celebrate India Inc. which is a Victorian, not for profit, community organisation.
Hailed as one of the most spectacular multicultural events of the year, Diwali Festival showcases rich and diverse Indian culture. A plethora of cultural events has been planned to steal your heart. A stunning programme itinerary will incorporate various dance and musical performances promoting the diverse traditions and cultures from different parts of India.
A number of market stalls will be selling hand-made Indian jewellery, art and crafts and dresses. There will be Henna painting demonstration allowing you to stain your hands with intricate and lovely henna tattoos. In addition, Indian and Bollywood dance performance workshops will enable you to try some groovy moves. A wide array of food stalls will be serving delicious and authentic Indian food.
Diwali or Deepavali is the Hindu Festival of Lights which celebrates the victory of light over darkness, good over evil. Diwali is one of the biggest and brightest of all Indian festivals.
Diwali is the time to come together with families and don new clothes, savour delicious food, light bright lamps and celebrate with fireworks. Indian mythology hailing from different parts of India narrate the origin of Diwali in different manners. One of the popular beliefs is that when Lord Rama defeated the demon Ravana and returned to his kingdom Ayodhya after 10 years, the people of his kingdom welcomed their king with grand celebrations. The expansive celebrations entailed lighting houses with clay lamps, burning crackers and decorating the entire city with colorful décor. This marked the start of the Diwali celebrations.
Image by peddhapati via Wikimedia Commons
Another legend has it that when Goddess Kali took birth to rid the world of evil, she eventually lost control after killing all the demons and started killing all human beings. When Lord Shiva, husband of Goddess Kali, intervened Goddess Kali stepped on Lord Shiva's chest. As realisation dawned on her that she was about to crush her husband, her tongue hung out in horror and repentance. This stopped the killings. This remarkable event is commemorated in various parts of India as Kali Puja (worship of Goddess Kali) or Deepavali. Click
here to learn about all the legends surrounding the origin of Diwali.
Discover more important nuggets of information about the festival by visiting the
official website. Follow them on
Facebook to remain privy to all updates. At the time of drafting this article, the program guide had not yet been released. Click
here to access the program guide once it becomes available.
The Diwali festival will commence at 12pm with curtain failing at 9:45pm. Despite being a Hindu festival, Diwali is largely a cultural festival which welcomes all regardless of race or religion. Everyone is invited to join this glamourous and magnificent festival where you will be treated to a healthy dose of Indian culture, cuisine and more.
