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The Diwali Mela festival presented a programme of traditional Indian folk dancing.
Local Indian community welcomes Hindu New Year

Local Indian community welcomes Hindu New Year

Visitors were invited to sample traditional Asian cuisine while enjoying an extensive programme of Bollywood music and Indian folk dancing

TONY BRYANT

Friday, 3 November 2017, 09:53

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The Indian population of the Costa del Sol came together in the Plaza La Nogalera in Torremolinos last weekend to welcome the Diwali Mela Festival.

This festival, also known as the festival of lights, marked the beginning of the Hindu New Year and hundreds of people filled the main square to enjoy the celebrations.

Diwali Mela is one of the most important Indian national celebrations and legend claims that on this night, the Hindu goddess of good luck visits homes that are brightly illuminated. The festival was preceded by ceremony in Calle San Miguel, where a 'Happy Diwali' light was illuminated to inaugurate the event.

Organised by the Indian Community Costa del Sol, the festival presented Bollywood dancing and traditional Indian music, performed by several local Indian associations.

Visitors were invited to sample traditional Indian cuisine while enjoying an extensive programme of entertainment. The dance troupes, dressed in dazzling Indian attire, performed classical routines, their twirling bodies creating a kaleidoscope of colour, while a performance by a group of young children attracted a rousing reception from proud parents and spectators.

A craft market offered artisan products, aromatic spices and herbs, and jewellery, as well as Henna tattoos and exotic oils and fragrances.

Women were dressed in saris of every colour and design imaginable, complemented with gold bangles, beads and stunning hair jewellery, while the men looked regal in their embroidered sherwani coats and silk turbans.

The festival, which is observed by Hindus and Sikhs all over the world, was attended by several representatives of the local Hindu temple, and the Mayor of Torremolinos, José Ortiz, who spoke of his admiration of the local Indian community.

It is an honour to celebrate the Hindu New Year in Torremolinos, as this gives us the opportunity to strengthen the ties between our communities, the mayor said.

A firework display announced the arrival of the Hindu New Year and the revellers continued to celebratewith music until the festival finished at midnight.

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