5 Brides Share How They Celebrated The First Diwali After Their Wedding

Whether it's going out shopping with our loved ones for festive season fits or planning the dishes on the menu (or even deciding who to re-gift the packet of Soan Papdi to this year), Diwali is a festival of togetherness. Celebrating the festival after a major milestone, like your wedding, makes it even more special. We asked five brides to share how they celebrated Diwali right after getting married and the results were heartwarming, to say the least! Take a look…

Brides Share Stories Of Their First Diwali Celebrations, Post-Wedding

When Diwali opened doors to a new experience

“I come from a Brahmin household and my husband Vinit is a Jain. Diwali at my Mom’s place begins with ‘Neeru Tumbo Habba’ (Jalatrayodashi), where we clean large water-storage vessels and decorate withrangoli, and lightdiyas. In the evening we are occupied with tasks like lighting diyas and creating colourful rangolis. For me, the fondest memories of Diwali are with my grandmother. Growing up, I enjoyed helping her to light up the entire house with lots of diyas. My parents are doctors and medical college professors at a reputed college. The house always used to be full of medical students during this time and my mom used to prepare some amazing food. When I celebrated my first Diwali at my in-law’s place, I got to experience a new set of traditions. It was really interesting to see how they perform Lakshmi Puja at their shop.”

-Revathi Krishnamurthy, Pathologist from Bangalore

When the festival of light was filled with surprises

“Diwali at my mother’s place was based on South Indian traditions, while at my husband’s place, the celebrations were a fusion of North and South Indian traditions. Like everyone else, I wanted our first Diwali together to be an unforgettable experience. I had planned a surprise Diwali party and invited all my husband’s close friends, and we celebrated Diwali together, with lots of lights, laughs and sweets. I had bought a glittering gold watch as a present for my husband, and I was surprised that he too had bought a gold watch for me. We smiled at each other when we saw this and realised how similar we both are.”

-Sandy Vyjay, Travel Writer and Entrepreneur

When Diwali was swept up in wanderlust

“Ours was a typical arranged marriage. We were two very different people, living in two corners of the country with one common interest - travel. Our mantra right from the moment we decided to get married has been that we were going to explore the world, and simultaneously discover ourselves. Diwali is the biggest holiday we get, and as both of us are busy throughout the year, this festival helps us travel together and strengthen our bond. Every Diwali, we pack our bags and head off to a faraway place to celebrate. Firsts are always special but we chose to continue our annual ritual of travelling everywhere during this break. This year we've moved to a new house and it would've been our first Diwali there. Instead of changing our routine ritual of travelling together, we chose to take our parents along with us on our journey.We had a tough time convincing the parents to come along, especially on a major festival like Diwali, but eventually they agreed to come along with us.”

-Nirali, Content Creator

When the festival of lights became the festival of colours

“Diwali at my mother’s place is filled with traditional rituals, lots of sweets, and big family gatherings. My husband’s family celebrates the festival with a mix of tradition and modernisation. Getting to experience a blend of both worlds is truly magical. For our first Diwali, we’ve decorated our home with lights and rangoli to create a warm and vibrant atmosphere. This year, we’re also adding a community element by participating in a local Diwali festival and have also invited the neighbours to join us. We’re also using eco-friendly decor and making a donation to bring the spirit of Diwali alive. The funniest part is that while we were making preparations for Diwali, my husband Debashish, accidentally spilled rangoli colours onto himself, and we both ended up covered in colours.”

-Richa Mehta, Model and Actor

When Diwali brought people together beautifully

“I am a Hindu and my husband is a Muslim. When we told our parents about our relationship they were obviously worried about what people and society would say, but then with time, they accepted our love for one another. Diwali at my place is very grand, whereas at my husband’s place, it is a low-key affair. As they are all foodies, this occasion just gives them another excuse to relish some good food. Although Diwali is not a festival in my husband’s religion, for our first Diwali after marriage, he invited three couples who also got married in the same year as ours, to our place and we all had a great time together. Any celebration, whether it's in my house or whether it's in my husband’s house, we celebrate it together. If it's something specific to his religion we make sure we celebrate it in my house and any celebration that is specific to my culture, his mom takes specific care to prepare food for the festival. We take pride and joy in being a part of each other’s culture and celebrations.”

-Anjaly Menon, Software Professional