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Bazaars, light-up at Little India a hit with revellers

SINGAPORE — Amid tighter security, crowds thronged the bazaars of Little India to soak in the festive spirit and for some last-minute bargains on the eve of Deepavali on Tuesday (Oct 17).

Shoppers at Little India on the eve of Deepavali on Tuesday. Photo: Jason Quah/TODAY

Shoppers at Little India on the eve of Deepavali on Tuesday. Photo: Jason Quah/TODAY

SINGAPORE — Amid tighter security, crowds thronged the bazaars of Little India to soak in the festive spirit and for some last-minute bargains on the eve of Deepavali on Tuesday (Oct 17).

Shop owners reported brisk business and shoppers had their bags filled with rangoli (coloured rice powder for floor decorations), sweets, new metal utensils (believed to bring good luck and fortune) and oil lamps called diya.

Deepavali, which signifies the triumph of light over darkness, is also called the Festival of Lights.

The parallel Birch and Burmah roads were closed from 5pm on Tuesday to 4am the next day and TODAY observed heightened police presence to facilitate heavy human traffic at the two bazaars near Tekka Centre and opposite Mustafa Centre. Auxiliary police officers were also deployed to regulate traffic and assist motorists.

For some members of the public, the trip to Little India was a family affair.

Mr Harvinder Grewal, 48, and his family were making their third trip to Little India in the lead-up to Deepavali. Besides buying lamps and candles, his two daughters aged 9 and 15 had henna done.

“We do our shopping in instalments on purpose,” said Mr Grewal, who works in the logistics technology industry. “My wife and I are Sikhs from India – Mumbai and Kolkata – so this is our way to expose our children to their culture.”

Nurse Banumathi Baskaran took her mother to the bazaar to show her how the festival was celebrated in Singapore. The older woman is celebrating Deepavali here for the first time and had travelled from Vellore in southern India.

“The atmosphere out here is very different (from India), but we keep the traditions at home. Tomorrow at 5am, I will wake everyone in the family up for an oil bath,” said the 44-year-old, who works at a dialysis centre and has lived in Singapore for 17 years.

“Today, I make sure that everyone in the family has a new dress to wear. It doesn’t matter if you are rich or poor, it’s a must to start the year with new clothes for happiness and prosperity.”

It was also the first Deepavali in Singapore for Mrs Neha Batra and her husband – and it will not be their last. Said the 28-year-old engineer from New Delhi, who arrived here in July: “I never believed that in Singapore, we get the same crowds in the streets as in India the day before Deepavali.”

The revellers included non-Hindus who wanted a slice of the action and a taste of a different culture.

“Deepavali is a colourful celebration of Indian culture and a festival of light, which is not that hard to identify with as a concept,” said bible college student Jonathan Kong, 30, who was with six friends.

Ms Roszila Sapawan, 29, braved the crowds at Jothi Store and Flower Shop to get new pooja items with her future mother-in-law, Mrs Santhamarai Vijayah Kumar, 60. Hindus perform the pooja by cleaning and decorating their homes and offering delicacies to welcome deities -- typically Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth.

Said Mrs Santhamarai: “This year, I am very happy to welcome a new daughter-in-law. Last year, I got a new grandson (from another of my children). It’s like I am getting a new family member every year.”

Project coordinator Sapiee Sadi, 65, was spotted taking a photo of the light-up. “I don’t celebrate Deepavali, but I want to put some notes on a photo I take so I can send to my (Indian co-)workers as a form of greeting,” he said.

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