Leicester Diwali Celebrations – Leicester, England - Atlas Obscura

Leicester Diwali Celebrations

The City of Leicester hosts the biggest Diwali celebrations in Britain and possibly the biggest outside India. 

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Diwali (also known as Deepavali) is the Hindu festival of lights celebrated every year in autumn (in the northern hemisphere). The date of Diwali changes each year as the day it is celebrated is calculated according to the position of the moon and the Hindu lunar calendar. It is of the most popular festivals of Hinduism. Its celebration includes millions of lights shining on housetops, around doors and windows, around temples and other buildings. These light are traditionally provided by candles but in urban areas spectacular lighting schemes along specific streets, similar to those traditionally used in Western countries to celebrate Christmas have been adopted widely.

On the same night that Hindus celebrate Diwali, The Jains celebrate a different festival, which they also call Diwali, and at the same time Sikhs celebrate a festival called Bandi Chhor Divas. Thus in those areas where Indians with these religions are living in close harmony they all celebrate together. In Britain, people of Indian origin celebrate Diwali with great enthusiasm. It is seen as an important time to contact family in India and to exchange gifts. The festival has found great acceptance amongst the broader British community as more non-Hindus appreciate, and are delighted to  celebrate, this Hindu festival. Often Diwali presents are  exchanged for early Christmas gifts  by neighbours from different communities.

Hindus celebrate all over the UK but the City of Leicester, one of the greatest concentrations of people of Indian descent in the UK and one of the most diverse communities, plays host to some of the biggest Diwali celebrations outside of India. The celebration is concentrated on an area to the north of the city centre  known, informally, as the Golden Mile. This is a specific length of the Belgrave Road which has a large number of Indian restaurants, jewellers and sari shops. The Golden Mile is famous for its Diwali  lights and in recent years the festival has become associated with a large illuminated Ferris wheel which is installed at one end of the Golden Mile and is known as the Leicester Wheel of Light (.

The switching on of the Diwali lights is typically attended by over 35000 people and even more people are present in the “Diwali Village” in a nearby park on the actual night of Diwali. In 2016, the Diwali lights switch-on event  also featured two new breath-taking displays. These were “Ocean Of Light” which included an evocative outdoor installation featuring thousands of lights suspended in space, and “Colours of Radiance”, a dazzling light show using LED illuminated umbrellas to create moving patterns in the form of the rangoli designs usually created with flowers etc. on the floors of homes during Diwali and other Hindu festivals.

The two week celebration also includes traditional music and dancing and a spectacular fireworks display and the food outlets in the Diwali village provide an opportunity to try some of the best (and authentic) Asian food in the world.

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