Celebrate Diwali with fireworks, fountain shows and feasts
Diwali falls on Saturday this year, and the UAE is all set to celebrate the five-day Indian festival of lights with everything from fireworks to festive menus. Note that because of the pandemic, residents have been urged to follow safety guidelines including maintaining social distancing and wearing face masks when in public.
Enjoy the fireworks display at Global Village in Dubai on Thursday and Friday, and at The Pointe, Palm Jumeirah, on Friday, at 9pm. Global Village also has performances of Lights, Camera, Action, Bollywood! from today until Friday, giving guests a behindthe-scenes look at how Hindi films are made. The Pointe will club its fireworks with a special performance courtesy of the Palm Fountain, which will be set to contemporary Bollywood songs.
Bollywood-themed shows are also being performed at the open-air stage at Al Seef from tomorrow until next Saturday, while Dubai Festival City Mall will put on two themed Imagine shows, projected on to its giant laser screen, from 6.30pm on Friday, until next Saturday. One show is a performance of Hathi’s Garden, which tells the story of a baby elephant, and the second is a rendition of Jai Ho, the song featured in the movie Slumdog Millionaire.
In Abu Dhabi, Indian nationals can enjoy a discount at Ferrari World, with tickets going for Dh95 over Diwali weekend, down from Dh295. Residents must book their visit online and present their national ID at the ticketing counter.
Elsewhere in the capital, several restaurants will offer themed menus. For a fine-dining feast, head to Punjab Grill at The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal, which is curating an a la carte menu from tonight until Sunday. Expect dishes with a contemporary twist, such as pulled jackfruit raj kachori and Chettiar-spiced southern chicken wings, plus street food options such as masala maska buns and pav bhajis. Jalebi churros is one of its limited-time desserts.
For a simpler affair, sample the Diwali thalis at Zambar Coastal Kitchen, a South Indian restaurant in the capital’s Bawabat Al Sharq Mall. These will be served from tomorrow until next Saturday. The fourcourse non-vegetarian platter (Dh79) comes with a choice of mint and coriander chicken, Nilgiri mutton korma and spicy Lucknowi dum fish curry for the first course. Classic tikkas make up course two, while course three is a choice of dal or vegetables. The vegetarian thali (Dh69) features paneer makhani, dal makhani, homestyle cauliflower and aloo koliwada. Each thali also includes naan, rice, pickle, chutney and a signature dessert, as a well as a bowl of rice pudding.
A Diwali celebration is incomplete without sugary Indian sweets, which also make for ideal gifts. Check out the boxes available at Bombay Canteen at The Galleria Al Maryah Island. These feature motichoor ladoos, besan ladoos, milk cake, kaju katli, khoya, mawa pedas and a variety of barfis, and will be available until Saturday.
In Dubai, Sugargram has limited-edition Diwali gift boxes with an assortment of cupcakes, including a new autumnal classic: pumpkin spice, available until Sunday.
If you’re heading out for a meal, visit Indya by Vineet at Le Royal Meridien Beach
Diwali is incomplete without sugary Indian sweets, which also make for ideal gift boxes
Resort, a restaurant by celebrity chef Vineet Bhatia. Its three-course Diwali Dhamaka sharing menu, available on Saturday, features charcoal sev papdi chaat, coriander fish, Daulat aunty’s mutton dhansak and chicken makhani, plus kulfi falooda for dessert.
If you’d rather celebrate at home, consider ordering a DIY Diwali meal kit from Vida Emirates Hills. The Dh225 kit can feed up to four, and comes with ingredients to prepare pappad with chutney, popcorn with chaat masala and salsa, and deliciously spicy pani puris, plus an assortment of Diwali sweets. If that sounds like too much effort, take advantage of Zomato’s Festival of Lights promotion and get up to 50 per cent off orders made online. There is a minimum spend of Dh20, and the deal is available until next Saturday. The offer is valid on more than 200 Indian and South Asian restaurants in Dubai, including Fusion Amaravathi, 800 Thali and Yummy Hyderabadi.