THE FIRST Diwali Utsav festival has lit up the night in Newcastle and drawn a crowd of hundreds.
The celebration, known as Festival of Lights, was held at the Hunter Multicultural Communities centre on Saturday, October 26.
The five-day Hindu festival symbolises the victory of light over darkness, good over evil and knowledge over ignorance, and is one of the most significant events in India.
Sunita Pandit, who organised Newcastle's first festival with Sameer Patke, said at least 600 people attended, more than double what they first expected.
"It turned out really well, the response from the community was awesome," she said.
She said it had brought people together and the feedback had been overwhelmingly positive, with many asking them to throw the festival on a yearly basis.
"Doing it for the first time, this was definitely a success," Ms Pandit said.
The hallmarks of Diwali include good food, fireworks, coloured sand, special candles and lamps.
There was also an open dance floor, DJ and food stalls at the Newcastle event.
Often the festival is celebrated throughout homes in India with personalised rituals.
Ms Pandit said the idea behind the Newcastle celebration was to bring a piece of where she grew up to where she lives now.
