Diwali: festival of firecrackers and pollution.
That doesn’t sound right, does it? Unfortunately though, that’s what the festival that lights up India, and most of South Asia, has been reduced to. We’re all sick of being told to have a ‘Happy Diwali’ and to ‘Say no to crackers’ in the same breath (and some have given cheeky ‘Pick one!’ answers to schoolteachers even), but too many of us either tune it out or give in to the urge to burst a few, just when we thought we’d make our Diwali different this year. In the midst of all this, we end up forgetting the true spirit of Diwali, caught up as we get in the to-burst-or-not-to-burst madness.
To kill your problems as well as the Earth’s with one stone, we bring you some unconventional things to do that let you celebrate Diwali, and not harm the environment while you’re at it. Because being creative and quirky shouldn’t be unsafe for you or your surroundings, and you definitely need not include pollution in your plans.
While we don’t buy the authenticity of this photo, we have to admit that this alleged shot from space of India-and-neighbours on Diwali night is gorgeous.
1. Give and Let Live
Everyone has heard horrific stories about young children getting burnt or injured while making crackers. Even you are susceptible to hurt by the evil things! Instead of just not bursting any, why not donate that money to a charity or volunteer at an NGO? Or better yet, you can give old clothes or random paraphernalia you no longer need. You’re sure to find tons while doing your Diwali cleaning!
Further, street dogs have a hard time on Diwali night and don’t see the fun in all the noise and light of firecrackers. They’re not only terrified but also shivering because of the sudden winter that Diwali brings and some are even injured by misdirected firecrackers. If you want to go the extra mile, take a local stray in on Diwali, feed it, and share the spirit of giving to others with man’s best friend, too. You could also go over and lend a hand at a shelter.
Image Courtesy- The Alternative
2. Long-Distance Festivity
For those living away from home this Diwali, don’t skip the fun and festivity! There are lots of things you can do to celebrate even if you’re not with family, even if you’re living abroad. Do the Diwali puja by yourself or with friends that want to share in your culture by lighting a brass diya or candles, with chocolates instead of mithai. It’s also not hard to acquire a picture of goddess Lakshmi (there are hundreds available on the internet). Place some of the available currency in your pooja thali as you do the Lakshmi pooja and play some aartis on your computer. If you are up for it, search for the words on the internet and chant along!
Why not also drop in at neighbours’ houses with chocolates and candles? Irrespective of religion, they will definitely be happy to get chocolates and light a candle outside their house. It’s also not hard to throw on something festive for the day while going about your routine, even though Diwali falls on a weekday this year. Go all the way by also making a rangoli with flowers, colours, or really anything you want. You could get your friends to help, or even make a competition out of it. In fact, we’ve already covered unconventional ways to make rangoli in a previous article!
Ask yourself, “why not?”. After all, they did it in K3G!
Image Courtesy- The Alternative
3. Diya, D.I.Y.
Looking for something to do that doesn’t involve fireworks? Here’s something you can do on Diwali that doesn’t involve those spawns of Satan. Make your own diyas and candles! There are tons of videos and instructables online that offer step-by-step instructions on how to make and decorate diyas, candles or paper lanterns by yourself. This is a great way to decorate your house with Diwali lights that you know aren’t harmful, since you know everything that went into them, and is also a fun bonding exercise to spend quality time with friends, family or a significant other. Imagine all that time, effort and money you would have wasted playing with crackers when you could be doing cool, creative stuff like this instead! Hell, you could even recreate the iconic (but NSFW) Ghost scene while you’re making your clay diyas (at your own risk).
The great part is that with the amount of time you’ll spend making these, you won’t even think about all the crackers you aren’t bursting. Go you!
Image Courtesy- LemonChutney
4. Au Naturel
Not satisfied with merely not harming the environment? Take a positive step and plant some trees or saplings. Planting lots of trees will definitely help to counteract the damage caused by all the crackers going off. Replace your sparklers with plants this Diwali and cut down the pollution. Trust us, you’ll feel great about yourself and be able to enjoy a guilt-free Diwali. While you’re on this counteracting-damage trip already, we’d suggest that you use rice flour, natural colours or flowers, instead of artificial coloured-powder, for your rangoli.
You can also take your green Diwali a step further and make a difference in your gift-giving rituals as well. Wrap your presents in newspaper or recycled paper and give out hand-made gifts instead of store-bought ones. We know you can handle this now that you know how to make your own candles and diyas! This will also make your gift unique and personalized- who doesn’t love to stand out among the dozens of trite dry fruit trays? We have enough badaams to last us years, aunties!
Image Courtesy- AlternativeIndia and SaveTreesSaveEarth
A lot of our suggestions may seem like obvious things to do, but there are too few people that actually practice any of these. Raise that number this festive season, and make this Diwali better for you, your environment and your neighbours that you won’t be torturing with the noise this year. Have a happy, fun, safe and beautiful Diwali, no matter where in the Indian diaspora you are.
Let’s make the expression ‘Say no to crackers’ redundant!
