Diwali is more than just the festival of lights — it’s a time to come together with family, share warmth, and revel in festive traditions. From vibrant rangolis and glowing diyas to homemade sweets and timeless delicacies, every element adds to the season’s charm. Here’s a look at how some well-known personalities of Kolkata are celebrating Diwali and making it special in their own way.
‘Diwali’s a cosy, homely affair for our family’: Minu Budhia
Psychotherapist Minu Budhia begins her preparations for Diwali nearly a month in advance, starting with a thorough decluttering of her home. As the festival approaches, she decorates her Ballygunge residence with earthen diyas and garlands.
She makes colourful rangolis around the house with the help of her gardener. “I prefer using marigold flowers which our gardener grows in our garden. It is easier to clean. If we use paint, it becomes messy and more difficult to remove from surfaces,” said Budhia.
She spends the festival with her family, offering prayers, bursting noise-free crackers and relishing her timeless homemade favourites, like Dal Halwa, Dahi Vada, and Puri-Sabji. “It’s a homely affair and very, very cosy,” shared Budhia.
Minu’s daughter, Preeyam, also shared her thoughts about the festival. “For me, Diwali is all about celebrating with my loved ones — friends as much as family. On the day itself, we begin with the Lakshmi Puja at home, followed by fireworks, a family dinner, and a cosy get-together with our closest people to give thanks for what we are already blessed to have and to look forward to a brighter, happier tomorrow,” she said.
Minu added that the celebrations continue the next day with an extended family gathering. The festivities in Budhia’s family end with the occasion of Bhai Duj.
‘Diwali holds emotional significance for the Neotia family’: Madhu Neotia
For The India Story founder Madhu Neotia, Diwali is all about warmth and celebrating togetherness. She shared that she loves hosting guests at her home on the day. Over 40 people, including friends, family and industry colleagues, gather at her Ballygunge residence every year.
"The entire premises of our home are illuminated with diyas. We don't make rangolis. Instead, diyas and fresh flowers ring in the festive spirit for us and fill the house with vibrance and positive energy," she said.
Dressed in traditional attire, the Neotia family offers prayers to Lord Ganesha and Goddess Lakshmi. They then enjoy a delicious spread of Rajasthani delicacies after the Puja. Some of her favourite recipes include dahi vada, moong dal ka halwa and kachori.
The festival holds emotional significance for the Neotia family.
"For us, Diwali is about meeting everyone, seeking blessings from the divine and the elders and coming together to share joy. Together, we offer prayers for the family's peace and prosperity," said Neotia.
The entrepreneur also mentioned that she avoids bursting crackers. "We receive a few patakas as gifts. We light an anar or two, just for the festive feel," she said.
‘There’s a special joy in decorating your own home’: Surbhi Pansari
Designer Surbhi Pansari embraces a warm, traditional aesthetic for Diwali, decorating her Ballygunge home with earthen diyas and fresh flowers. Pansari said that she puts up the festive decor at least four days ahead of Diwali. “It helps me to set up the festive ambience at home. It lifts up everyone’s mood and the whole house feels so vibrant,” she said.
To enhance the festive mood, Pansari places camphor and essential oils around her home.
An artist at heart, Pansari personally paints the rangolis, especially near the entrance, using vibrant colours like crimson and marmalade. “Being a designer, I love painting, so when it comes to Diwali, I like to add a personal touch to the decor. There’s a special joy in decorating your own home,” she said.
“I keep a small box of rangoli essentials that I reuse every year, and then buy a few more colours to add something new. I usually create small rangolis along the walkway and a circular one near the entrance. It feels wonderful to come home and see something I made myself,” added Pansari.
Pansari also celebrates Diwali with her team at her studio on Loudon Street. “At the studio, we use lots of diyas and marigold flowers because I believe they bring positive energy. Their colour adds warmth and captures the spirit of Indian festivity,” she said, adding that for her, Diwali is ultimately about lights, love and togetherness.
‘Our Diwalis are always simple but meaningful’: Shashi Puri
Musician, teacher and Trincas co-partner, Shashi Puri, recalled how she learnt the Diwali rituals of the Puri family after her marriage in 1978. For Puri, Diwali has always been family-centric. It is the most important holiday of the year for the family, and she begins making small preparations for the festival well in advance.
“Earthen diyas would be bought and cotton wicks rolled. There had to be two diyas at every doorway to welcome the goddess. We would also line them along the parapet of our terrace where the children would later light phuljharis, anars, chakris and laris,” she said, describing how she sets up the festive mood at her Park Street residence.
Colourful earthen idols of Lord Ganesha and Goddess Saraswati placed on a large silver thali are used for the Puja, said Puri.
She added that once the arati is over, prasad is distributed — something that the children of the household eagerly look forward to.
“The children would wait for prasad after the puja, and this would consist of different types of patashas, home-made suji ka halwa with ghee, the obligatory khoya, and a coloured sugar house – ‘sweet home’ if you will,” shared Puri.
“We would sit around for a while, enjoying the antics of the children. Friends and relatives would drop by for short visits. Our Diwalis were always simple but meaningful,” concluded Puri, adding that the family now avoids bursting crackers as everyone is more conscious of noise and air pollution.
‘Diwali is homecoming for us’: Urvika Kanoi
For chef and entrepreneur Urvika Kanoi, Diwali is a celebration rooted in traditions that are incomplete without her family’s presence. Hailing from a large and liberal Marwari family, she grew up seeing rituals celebrated with joy. “My mother’s approach made every festival feel like a celebration, not a chore,” she said.
Now splitting her time between Mumbai and Kolkata, Urvika ensures the festivities light up both her houses in the two cities. “Even though I fly back for Diwali every year to Kolkata, I make sure that on Dhanteras, I'll buy my silver in Mumbai, I'll buy my jhaadu, I'll make rangoli, I'll hang the kandil, which is a Maharashtrian tradition,” she said.
The Kanoi family has a unique tradition of celebrating theme-based Diwali every year. Their celebrations begin days in advance, as they decide on the theme for the decor. From the colour palette of flowers to the metallic accents that light up corners, Urvika helps design the themes and her dad leads the decor work. This year, the plan is to move from silver tones and floral motifs before Diwali to gold elements on the main day.
Urvika explains that an alpana artist has been creating their rangolis for decades — sometimes with real flowers, sometimes with coloured rice or traditional paint. “Some years we do alpana, some years we go with modern touches, be it mirrors, shells, even terracotta and glass pieces. It depends on the mood,” she explained. “There are no rules. It’s about art and expression.”
While their family home in Kolkata sees elaborate floral rangolis, Urvika’s own space in Mumbai features hand-made powder-based designs that she enjoys creating herself. “Alongside the rangoli, we hang strands of dhaan and place it at Lakshmi’s feet at the door.”
More than firecrackers, which the Kanois refrain from, food marks an intrinsic part of their Diwali celebrations. Every meal is an act of love. Their culinary routine includes elaborate thalis on all three days, different types of farsan, sweets and her mother’s special sangar (a Rajasthani dried vegetable).