Lessons from the Gen Z Handbook for Diwali

Every year, sometime in late October, the festive spirit takes over. The streets sparkle as if stitched with star, the air carries a hint of the aroma of roasted nuts and incense, and WhatsApp groups are flooded with messages that say“Diwali party when?” And that’s when you know- the Diwali season has officially begun, that it brings with it chaos and calm both at once. 

However, the festival of lights we celebrate today is not quite the one we grew up with. Don't get me wrong- at its core, it is still the same, it is merely the intricacies that Gen Z has altered to fit its own understanding of the world. Diwali has been remixed, filtered, and (let’s be honest) posted on Instagram, with the glow of ring lights replacing the glow of diyas. It continues to be, indubitably, a celebration of light, but it now comes with captions, playlists, and colour themes. Right at the center of this evolution stands a ritual that has been increasingly popularized over the last couple of years- the Diwali party, our generation’s way of keeping traditions alive by wrapping them in something new.

There was a time when Diwali meant lugging around boxes of soan papdi as you visited relatives, watching the night sky crack open with colour, and perhaps catching a rerun of a family favourite TV series. Now, it means RSVP-ing to themed soirées, dressing in “ethnic chic” (a phrase that somehow encompasses both a lehenga and a linen kurta), and curating your own Diwali party recap reels. The Diwali party has become Gen Z's way of reimagining festivity. Be it a terrace gathering in Bandra with fairy lights and cocktails or a house party that looks straight out of your Pinterest board- the goal is merely to outshine routine, even if only for a night. This new version of Diwali has often been mocked, said to be possessing all sparkle and no soul. It is, however, our generation's attempt at keeping the spirit of the festival alive in a world that is incredibly ephemeral. 

In the age of Pinterest and Canva, organizing a party without a mood board is akin to dancing without music. Hosts plan color palettes (goodbye marigold and fuchsia, hello gold and sage), lighting themes (warm fairy lights only, please), and playlists that range from Kesariya to Kala Chashma. Invitations too, have been digitized with aesthetic fonts, and 'save the date' graphics. The planning itself entails several tasks undertaken from the host's end, who tries to strike the perfect balance between age-old traditions and new trends. 

The food, too, has evolved. Alongside the classic samosas and gulab jamuns now sit pav bhaji sliders, chaat platters and gulab jamun cheesecake, among others. The drink station offers chai-tinis and falooda shots. Instead of the usual roar of firecrackers, Badshah and Arijit fill the air, broken up by laughter and the occasional pop of a stray fooljhadi discovered in a drawer. It is all absurdly modern and, at the same time, deeply comforting.

If you scroll through Instagram during Diwali week, it is hard to tell when one party ends and another begins. Our generation has often been criticized for using the camera not just to show off, but to hold on... to moments, to connections, to warmth. And maybe that is true, but it stems from our need to make and preserve memories, and not our vanity. It is our way of saying that this mattered, this night mattered, these people mattered. The truth is, Diwali has always been marked by evolution. The diyas our grandparents lit were once innovations too, serving as symbols of a time when fire itself was sacred. Today’s fairy lights are just a new medium of that same glow.  

The morning after the party, you scroll through your phone, reliving last night through reels and blurry photos, smiling at moments you’d almost forgotten already. Maybe you send a message to a friend “Had such a great time last night!” Maybe you sit with your coffee, light one leftover diya, and watch the flame dance quietly. And it is then that you remember why this festival matters, and why, despite the chaos, we keep finding new ways to celebrate it.

Maybe our Diwali isn’t made of the same clay diyas and firecrackers our parents knew, but it still burns from the same impulse...to connect, to feel, to belong. We celebrate in cluttered living rooms and under strings of lights. It isn’t perfect, yes, but maybe it isn’t meant to be. What matters is that we still find ways to show up for each other, to make the night a little brighter than the one before. Perhaps that is what our generation does best...it takes tradition and remoulds it into something that is umistakably our own. 

So light your diyas, raise a toast, and embrace the chaos, because the festival of lights will always find a way to shine. Happy Diwali, dear reader! :)

-veenaaz