For actress Nimrat Kaur, Diwali symbolizes the warmth of home and the essence of Delhi. “Since childhood, my association with Diwali has always been about being at home – surrounded by my mother, my grandmother and if my sister is free, then with her too. There is no Diwali for me without staying at home,” says Kaur, “I would never want to celebrate Diwali away from home.”
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Ask her how the family celebrates the festival of lights and Kaur describes it as a “simple affair” at home. She shares that the festivities start with pre-Diwali shopping in the mall or local markets, where everyone chooses gifts to exchange. The house is beautifully decorated, and everyone dresses to impress. “Once we light all the candles and diyas after the puja and have an early dinner, we usually get in the car and go for a drive to see how other houses are decorated – he What did you do this year and what did you do last year? We’ve lived here so long, and we know the people, so we enjoy just hanging out and seeing what’s going on. Sometimes we also like to go to Sector 18 (Noida) to have ice cream.
Talking about the outfit, Kaur says, “My mother says ‘Sohni tarikh tayar hona hai’. She is very candid about dressing up well for Diwali as pictures are taken for family and friends. We wear really nice clothes – not just designer clothes, but we should look bright and colourful. My mother always buys a new outfit for me for Diwali.
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His favorite thing to do on Diwali? “I love making rangoli. I have been doing this for many years now and it has become like a tradition, where everyone is curious to see what I have created,” she adds, “Another cherished tradition of mine is Making jaggery rice by grandmother. Even at the age of almost 90, she maintains the traditions.
Reflecting on the celebrations of her childhood, Kaur, whose father, Major Bhupinder Singh, SC, served in the Army, says, “Growing up in cantonments, it was even simpler. There were no large-scale Diwali celebrations or parties. All the families celebrated quietly. I remember my dad used to bring crackers for us, which my sister and I loved. It was a very simple, low-key but very lovely Diwali.”
A war memorial dedicated to his father
On October 25, on the 72nd birth anniversary of Major Bhupinder Singh, SC, Nimrat Kaur attended the unveiling ceremony of his bronze bust at his birthplace, Sri Ganganagar, Rajasthan. “It is a memorial that honors 12 other martyrs, and it is named after my father. This Diwali is also special for this reason. This is a really important life event for us. We have been dreaming of this for the last three decades – to do something in his birthplace,” she tells us. Major Singh was kidnapped by enemies of the state on January 17, 1994 and martyred on January 23, 1994. She was posthumously awarded the Shaurya Chakra on March 13, 1994 – the date coincidentally falling on Kaur’s birthday.
