‘Let there Be light’

Overcrowded markets, countless earthen lamp vendors, sugar castles and sweet shops adorn our streets. The makeshift stalls in the schools fetes, college fests and colonies are all indicators of the fact that Diwali is round the corner. Beautiful Rangolis are another facet of this ‘festival of lights’.

Traditionally it is the occasion to celebrate the home-coming of Lord Rama after a 14 year long exile. So, the Northern half of India is flooded with joyous people while the southern part is submerged under water. The air is laden with elusive scent of daal ka halwa, gujiayas and smoke of fire crackers. The spectacular illumination of sky at night and the increasing risk of Global warming. The holy verses of laxmi pujan merge with the noise of sonorous bombs. The brightly lit roads mock the dark, sullen streets of the lands bereaved from electricity. The blessings of wealth and prosperity by goddess laxmi never reach out to the poverty stricken lands of the country.

Ours is a land of paradoxes, a land of distinct realities. It harbours all sorts of people, nature, festivals, regions and religion. We all celebrate this festival with the same fervour and enthusiasm. Delhi University students portrayed the gusto and frenzy of this festival in a creative manner. The university on the whole is going through a rough phase. But, the deplorable state of affairs in certain colleges has not reduced the passion for the festival. The LSR Diwali mela, University women’s hostel Diwali celebrations and Rangoli competitions portray the true ‘feel’ of the festival.

To join us in these celebrations is Mr. Keki.N.Daruwalah who has been roped in by the Faculty of Arts, South Campus as an adjunct faculty for a period of 3 months (from September to November). During this period he will be available for students to discuss their writings. In addition he shall also be conducting a few workshops on topics of literary interests. I seriously thank him for taking out time to write for us.

I would like to extend my heartiest congratulations to all the students of Delhi universities, our readers and DUB members. On the occasion of Diwali let us try to remove the lines of demarcation between the opposites that exist. Lets us use the spirit of the occasion to brighten our lives. Let the light seep into every nook and corner of the country. Lumos!


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