The Hindu festival of light, a five-day event that celebrates good triumphing over evil, will take place on November 12 this year, and be observed by more than a billion people across the planet.
In the capital, around 5.5 per cent of London’s population, or some 411,000 people, will celebrate Diwali. Typically, it will be marked by poojas (prayers), great music - and even better food - and fireworks to bring in the new year which is tracked on the Vikrami calendar. This calendar is 57 years ahead of the western Gregorian one, making it 2081.
