‘Yashraj and Bachchan parties bring the whole industry together’

Neil Nitin Mukesh

“Diwali for me signifies my family being together and spreading love and happiness. We generally celebrate Diwali with family at home and also visit our friends and family. We hold Diwali puja both at the office and our homes. After the puja we visit our family and friends. As children we use to burn crackers but now we choose to make rangoli and light diyas. We have card parties at home and invite friends over. The card sessions start as much as a month earlier than Diwali. I have attended many memorable Diwali parties. I still remember the big Diwali party that Yash uncle would throw and even now when we really do venture out it’s either to Yash uncle’s house or to Mr Bachchan’s residence. The parties at their houses are very famous. Their warmth is palpable and it's really lovely being there. They bring the whole film fraternity together and make everyone feel like a part of a big family. My mom ensures that the houses are repainted, and everything is polished. Cleaning for Diwali is a ritual I have witnessed since my childhood. I remember my mom decorating our house beautifully. Since we had Diwali holidays in school we would look forward to helping our mom with the decorations. She does it even now, but the charm of those days was something else. Putting up the decorations and lighting up the plants was, and is, a beautiful experience. As I child I would love burning crackers, and my dad really indulged both my sister and me but as we grew up we started understanding the importance of reducing noise and environmental pollution. So Neha and I burn sparklers, chakris and anars for the sake of shagun. We have a baby at home, Maximus and now Noorvi too so we have to be extra cautious. Maximus is afraid of the noisy crackers so we see to it that he is not disturbed. My Diwali message to my all my fans: May this Diwali bring a lot of happiness in your lives, may you all have prosperity and success.”