City lit up, streets abuzz for Diwali

Hyderabad: City residents decked up in all their finery to usher in the festival of lights. Right from Diwali eve, the festive spirit was palpable on the streets of Hyderabad's busy markets — bustling with people buying diyas, lights, sweets and other decorations, as vendors set up stalls at every corner selling festive essentials.Residents' homes too were lit-up, spreading the cheer. "Our Diwali starts with putting rangoli outside the house. We then light 13 diyas in the puja room," said Sushmita Durvusala, a retired bank official from Prakash Nagar, Begumpet. "The puja will begin in the evening, and afterwards, we will meet with family, neighbours, and relatives. Our Diwali spread usually includes pulihora, garelu, kooralu, annam and pappu, sambhar, rasam, and different pachadis," she added.Other communities too prepared for the festival with their own customs. "We started getting ready for Diwali a week ago, cleaning our house and making traditional snacks like chakli, khari boondi, chiwda, balushahi, bhajji, ladoo, and rava kesari," said Nishi Gupta, a physiotherapist from Begum Bazar. "This is part of our tradition. Then, in the days following Diwali, we invite friends and family and serve them these delicacies," added Gupta, who migrated to the city from Ranchi a few years ago.Some pockets of the city will also see the Bengali community organise their annual Kali Puja — complete with prayers, cultural programmes and feasts. "The three days of the festival will see the community come together to indulge in rituals, musical evenings and social bonding. On the last day we will bid farewell to the the goddess. These are practices that have been passed down through generations," said Subrata Banerjee, general secretary of Uttarayan club, a socio-cultural association of the Bengali community. The puja begins on the night of Oct 31.While for most it is a time to spend with family, those unable to travel to their hometowns for Diwali have decided to make the most of it with friends and acquaintances in the city. Sanjay Barjan, an IT professional from Pune, shared how he and his flatmates from Nashik, Delhi, and Kolkata have planned to mark the occasion. "We'll decorate our house, put rangoli, light diyas, and invite friends who also couldn't make it home for Diwali. We'll do a small Lakshmi puja in the evening and light a few green crackers. Celebrating with the people around us helps us feel closer to home."Meanwhile, local street markets were seen buzzing with activity on Wednesday evening owing to last-minute rush of shoppers. "It's great to see so many people come out for Diwali shopping," said Shekhar Raju, who has a stall in Sultan Bazaar selling diyas and decorative items. He added, "Every year, we wait for this season. This year I have added designer diyas as the regular ones are not being sold any more. The response for the designer diyas has been great so far."