‘Good old days with flamboyant festive spirit’

CHENNAI: Deepavali is a festival that instills hope in people’s hearts. It is one of those eagerly anticipated celebrations that unite the entire family. “I wouldn’t sleep the entire night before Deepavali, enjoying the cheerful atmosphere surrounding me. Unlike ordinary days, waking up early in the morning during the festival itself is a joyful experience,” shares Jayapriyanka, a 22-year-old journalist. For standup comedian Chockalingam, watching his favourite actor’s film during the festival is his kind of celebration. He says, “It’s a joyous moment to watch movies during the occasion and it is a double damaka if the film turns out to be good.” Shanthi Ravikumar shares her fond memories attached to the festival. “Around 20 years ago, I started to make nombu athirasam, one of the complicated sweets, without the help of elders. To date, the sweet hogs the limelight in our family during the festive season,” smiles the homemaker.

Balan, a 67-year-old retired transport staff, believes that the celebration of the festival differs with the financial status of people. “For people from economically weaker backgrounds, Deepavali is all about preparing small amounts of sweets and buying any packet of crackers for children. A few will borrow money to celebrate the festival with their family. Deepavali is same for breadwinners then and now,” he states.

Getting nostalgic about the festive spirit people had back then, Jayapriyanka reminisces, “Once I went to burst crackers with my uncle at 2.30 in the morning. I thought I was the only person awake. But, to my surprise the whole neighbourhood was enjoying each moment of the festival by bursting crackers, putting rangoli, and discussing about food and dessert recipes.”

As everyone is running to build their career and life, at times we forget to spend quality time with our family and friends. “Deepavali completes when the whole family comes together. For the past 40 years, my Deepavali was filled with the laughter and happiness of my family members. But now, as the children are moving to different places to pursue their career, the celebration spirit has reduced,” remarks Lalitha, a 63-year-old homemaker. Shanthi also feels the same but thinks that a few transitions in life are unavoidable.

Earlier, it was a norm to burst crackers during Deepavali. However, celebration evolves with time and people. Now, many are restricting themselves from bursting firecrackers or shifting to green crackers because of the deteriorating environment. But, is the festive spirit still high?

Many think that the influence of social media has affected the celebration of festivals. “Nowadays, people do things just to showcase to the world and gain attention,” Jayapriyanka says. She feels that the moment the camera is off, the celebration is over and people go back to the virtual world. “I am missing the old Deepavali when we don’t touch our mobile phones for the whole day,” she adds. She also fears that the festival will be just another holiday for the next generation. According to Chockalingam, kids are immersed in their smartphones and TV and don’t wish to go out and have fun. Even if they do, it is within their house or apartment premises.

These days, people are slowly moving towards eco-friendly celebrations. Shanthi suggests going environment-friendly and avoiding crackers as the world is being filled with incurable diseases because of pollution. Making a strong point about the life of workers at the crackers manufacturing factories, Balan supports the time restriction and emphasises the introduction of more green crackers, so that even the workers will be benefited.

“As our lives have become occupied and busy, use this festival to spend quality time with family and friends. It is a regular ritual in my family that for each Deepavali, my grandfather would tell the story behind the festival. Of course, the festival of lights is all about sweets and delicious feast,” emphasises Jayapriyanka.