This Sunday millions of people around the world will celebrate the Indian holiday of Diwali. The “Festival Of Lights” has fascinated me for the longest time but to be honest I never really understood what it was all about, we always treated it like an “Indian Christmas”. So today I invited author Anju Gattani onto the podcast to walk me through the Diwali celebration; how it compares to western holidays, the preparations that go into it, and what Diwali's origins are. 

Along the way we discuss her incredible experiences growing up in a multicultural community in Hong Kong (1:47), how Diwali compares to the American holiday season (4:28), exactly how Diwali is celebrated (5:30), the unique Diwali celebrations she experienced growing up (12:12)--including diverse Diwali Balls she attended (13:25). Anju and I spoke about the Indian culture's love of celebrations (15:48), how she integrates Indian and Western traditions in her household (18:44), why she labors to keep up with both Indian and American holidays (21:09), how exposure to other culture's celebrations is teaching her children respect (22:23), and how she portrayed Diwali in her novel Duty and Desire (29:09).

Read Anju's blog and find more information about her books on her official website. Make sure to follow her on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram!

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