All this seems a far cry from what Diwali used to be 20 years ago. Remember whitewashing the house a month ahead of the festival; taking out your best bedsheets and curtains from the trunk; lighting coloured candles bought from the neighbourhood store; gorging on barfis, ladoos and pedas without fear of adulterated khoya or diabetes and exploding the noisiest crackers without dreading court rules and deadlines?
Have those days been truly blown away by globalization and satellite television? Maybe not yet. There are still some constants within the churning. Pujas, sweets, parties, gifts, shopping, facials at the mohalla beauty parlour, resplendent lighting — all the wonderful elements that made this festival sparkle are still alive. What's new is their 21st century avatars. Now, there are aromatic diyas, Chinese lanterns and lights. online shopping discounts, Diwali nights at the mall, designer room and wardrobe makeovers, botox facelifts, baked samosas and gujiyas and sugar-free rasmalai... The essence is there, but the flavour has changed.
Sweet edible photos
If you have a sweet tooth, then the in-thing to do this year is to bite into cupcakes. "Mithai is so old world," says Gauri Pant, a 30-something homemaker in Delhi. "No matter what people say about buying jewellery, painting their homes and the like, if the goodies are not nice, there is no glitter at all," she says. "Every year, I try to do something new. This year, my specialty is fruit-filled chocolate tarts and cupcakes. I ordered them from a friend who caters from home."
Indeed, cupcakes seem to be the gourmet crackers. Gayatri and Anushka Kakkar, who started their cupcakes kiosk at a South Delhi mall last year-end, say they are looking at the "best business" this Diwali. "Not only do we have cupcakes in all kinds of festive icing, we even have photo cupcakes with images of diyas, 'Happy Diwali', the shubh labh symbol and so on. These are turning out to be the season's favourites," says Anushka.
Corporates, too, want a slice of it. "Companies are giving us their logos to put on cupcakes, which we are making into hampers," says Anushka.
Not just that, if you want to gift relatives your family photo, then do it as photo cakes which have edible ink.
"This is taking off from the western idea of Christmas and New Year cards with family photos," says Akhilesh Kumar, who has ordered 50 cakes with his family portrait on them, for family and friends. "Who has the time to visit everyone anymore? This way, meetha ka meehta bhi ho jaata hai and people can think of us fondly too," says this Mumbai-based businessman.
The easy availability of almost anything you crave in the shop round the corner is certainly taking its toll on cooking at home. "Even three years ago, I used to make everything at home," says Zareen Malik, a management executive. "From namkeen to laddoos to sherbet. But now everything is so easily available in the market," she says.
But some are still holding on to tradition. "I still make small samosas and besan laddoos on Diwali," says Reema Kaushik, a homemaker in Delhi who has two small sons. She has fond memories of her mother making puran polis and puran ki sabzi during her childhood in Maharashtra. Media professional Maya Venkateswaran is a whiz at churning out crisp dal vadas but the Mysore Pak sweet that her mother used to make on Diwali still fails her. It seems an era is passing with the older generation.
Puja, the traditional way
That's probably true about the Diwali puja too. Much of the younger generation doesn't have the patience or the time for rituals. "Diwali was celebrated earlier more out of faith. It was more pious. Now it's commercialized. It's more of a show," says Reema. But she adds that there are some who still do Ganesh puja and aarti, light diyas and draw the Satya sign. "I make rangoli outside my home and decorate it," she says.
Even the business class continues to do puja in their shops. Atul Bhargava, president of New Delhi Trader's Association, remembers that his father used to get a pandit to do puja at the open safe in his shop. Now, "however modern my wife might be, she comes to do puja at the shop. After all, that's where the bread and butter comes from," he reasons.
Game for casino parties?
Diwali parties have also been a tradition. But their glitter has changed with the times. True, there are still get-togethers where people like Reema organize simple card parties with friends. But for a number of others, "Diwali parties are like mini sangeets", says Ruchi Chopra who runs a personalized gifting service that helps people organize surprise parties. Despite being in the business, Ruchi was amazed when she attended a party that resembled a casino in Las Vegas. "There were eight tables with different denominations and I was asked to stop at the one with Rs 50 as I was a novice!" she says. "The most noticeable change has been the almost complete replacement of traditional card games like rummy with modern ones like poker. Roulette tables with a dealer are the rage but these are slightly more expensive and not as common yet." Ruchi has organized everything from "personalized drinking games to poker games" and even designed personalized gifts and return gifts like "the very popular card decks".
Vandana Gotra, an independent event planner based in Delhi, also likens Diwali parties today to traditional Indian weddings. "There are many days of revelry and the celebrations begin at least a week in advance," she says.
At the individual level, regional nuances are beginning to melt under the overwhelming influence of cosmopolitan culture. "Everybody is hosting card parties these days, not just north Indian communities who believe a bit of gambling brings good luck during Diwali. Most of us are invited to at least one card party every night in the run-up to the festival, and I know a few this season that are being hosted by Maharashtrian families too," says T Anupam, CEO of Lifestyle Center Management in Mumbai.
That boredom with the old is also impacting the kind of gifts people are buying. Mehul Choksi, CMD of diamond and jewellery manufacturing and retailing company, Gitanjali Group says, "There's an increase in people's buying power. They now want to buy products which are new and modern." He adds gold, silver and diamonds are doing very well despite their high prices. "There's been 75% sales growth since the beginning of Navratras." Gold and silver coins have always been a favourite. Nalini Mohan, a mother of two married daughters in Delhi, remembers that she didn't have to buy any gold for their marriages, "because we used to buy gold or silver coins every Diwali."
T Anupam adds that the festival of lights comes a close second to family weddings in terms of shopping for high-value garments and accessories. The value of gifts has risen phenomenally, spanning many items, ever since the birth of malls in India some seven years ago. But the rush hasn't started yet this year, says P G Makhija, CEO of Bombay Dyeing. He thinks it's possibly because of inflation. "People want to buy more, but the volumes are close to last year's figures," he says. He is upbeat about the large number of inquiries about their new fragrant bed linen called Aroma Rich, the launch of which coincided with the festive season.
Gizmos on Dhanteras
There's a widespread consensus that gadgets are the 'new gold' for consumers now. On Dhanteras last year, Anna Shekhar did not buy any gold, silver or jewellery as she had done for the past 25 years of her marriage. "Instead I bought a laptop, a shiny gold one," says this Nagpur homemaker who thought the laptop would be of more use and she would also be keeping to the tradition of buying metal.
"It was the first time that I bought a gadget on Dhanteras. My daughter has been doing that since the time she was 15. Even in her new home (with her husband in Delhi), they buy gadgets mostly, sometime appliances too. I think I am going to end up doing the same. After all, like jewellery, gadgets are a status symbol too," says Shekhar.
Probably that's why corporates are hoping for an upswing in sales this year. Sony India's marketing budget is Rs 45 crore this festive season. "We are expecting at least 50% growth in sales," says Tadato Kimura, general manager, marketing, Sony India, adding that the company's special this time is digital photo frames.
Mobiles and cameras are the usual favourites, but another hot-selling item this year is portable hard drives. "They are sleek, very useful and unlike cell phones, it does not matter whether 'you get yet another as a gift'," says Mumbai-based Mithali Sharma, who has bought "30 slim 100GB ones for all her friends."
The craze for new gizmos is making its impact on online shopping. Who would have imagined 20 years ago, that if you didn't have the inclination or the time for some market hopping, then one day all you need would be a plastic card and a Net connection to get 'Diwali dhamaka discounts' and have the gifts delivered within a week? "Just the thought of the crowds, the traffic and the parking nightmare is scary," says Rajyashree M, who ordered 200 dry fruit boxes to be delivered to her colleagues, friends and even some family members online. "The best deals are online," says Mithali, who bought hard drives, a cellphone and a laptop online. eBay India has launched a television campaign specifically for online Diwali shopping.
Rangoli at the mall
Changing consumer behavior is driving other business innovations. For instance, malls have customized themselves to offer what is popularly known as 'the family experience'. DLF Place in Delhi did extensive research to not only assess the kind of purchases made during the festival but also what activities families like to do together. Says Arindam Kunar, VP, DLF Place, "Our revenues are expected to grow anywhere between 25-28% as compared to last year. More and more people are coming to malls to celebrate Diwali."
It's the convenient alternative to visiting friends and family, one that combines shopping, food and fun. "There is some kind of shopping for everyone in the family (two sons aged 17, 14 and one daughter 19, and wife). While the boys play games and such, the women get their beauty treatments and I have a drink. Sure it's like any other family day but then these malls always have something new on Diwali," says Delhi businessman Rohan Desai. "It sure beats dragging the kids to a friend's place they don't want to go to, or making small talk at one of the over-the-top parties my wife takes me to."
No wonder, malls are laughing all the way to the bank. T Anupam of Mumbai's Lifestyle Center Management, says sales at malls are rising 20% year on year. "This Dhanteras we expect another 20% rise over the previous year," he says. Agrees retail entertainment professional Vijay Dewan who is designing the Diwali entertainment programmes for three malls in Mumbai — Inorbit, Oberoi and Korum. He says that sales in general are far more robust now as compared to five years ago. "Where five years ago a customer spent Rs 550 on average, he is now spending Rs 750 per trip," he says.
Expectedly, bargain deals and freebies are pushing up sales during the festival. "We have devised a game in Oberoi Mall, Goregaon, where people, who have made purchases over a certain amount, can participate by showing us their bills. We find that 30-40% of the bills, or tickets as we call them, come from the purchase of electronic items as compared to 4-5% from jewellery stores," says Dewan. "The sale of electronic items, especially during Dhanteras, is likely to break all previous records."
Business is doing great but many are lamenting the breakdown of community spirit on Diwali. "Over the last decade, the after-hours aspect of the festival when the entire neighbourhood gathered to burst firecrackers has all but come to an end. Increasingly, the new generation tends to isolate itself with computer games and internet cliques. Parents like me fear they will never know the joys of celebrating the festival in community spirit like we did as recently as in the 1980s," says Sheela Damania, a 42-year-old mother of two who lives in Andheri, Mumbai. Agrees Nalini Mohan: "I still make it a point to sit down and spend time with people.
Hitting the travel trail
Some of those who don't have relatives in town or would like to bond with their closest kin are looking for new ways of doing so. Anandan NT, working with a media house in Delhi, is spending his Diwali night in the desert. He and his brother are taking their families on a holiday in Rajasthan during the long weekend next week. "I felt like doing something different this Diwali," says Anandan.
He's not alone in wanting to celebrate the festival away from home and hearth. Manmeet Ahluwalia, marketing head of travel firm Expedia India, says, "We have seen a 50-70% rise in hotel and airline bookings during Diwali on domestic and international sectors. People are travelling overseas to celebrate during the long weekend. Most of those going overseas are double-income couples, going alone or with friends to nearby destinations like Malaysia, Singapore, Dubai and Thailand."
So, instead of dressing up in kurta-pajama and zari saris for the Diwali party next door, people are donning casuals and backpack. "There's been a 12-15% increase in international travel during Diwali over last year. Many of them are looking for newer experiences, and might not care for the traditional Diwali celebration with family. Travellers are also going to domestic leisure destinations like Goa," adds Manmeet.
Twenty years ago, there were no mobile phones, broadband, satellite television or mass credit cards in India. Liberalization changed all that. As did cable television, Bollywood movies and the K-serials which changed the way people saw festive celebrations. Purists might feel unsettled with the face of Diwali 2010, but then it's only a reflection of what people want. After all, the customer is king!
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