Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai
Mumbai, Oct 30: Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan recently took a nostalgic trip down memory lane as he recalled traditional Diwali celebrations and age-old festive practices during a special episode of the quiz-based reality show ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’.
The veteran actor spoke about how earthen lamps, or diyas, were carefully preserved and reused every year as part of his family's Diwali preparations.
Reflecting on the festive traditions of an earlier generation, Bachchan said, “Many festivals are tied to memories, Diwali, for instance. We belong to an older generation, back then, when Diwali approached, we would carefully preserve the earthen lamps (diyas) from the previous year”.
He further recalled how the lamps were soaked in water, dried and arranged around the house before being filled with mustard oil and lit.
“We’d soak them in water to refresh them, let them dry, and then place them all around the house. We would fill them with mustard oil, what we called kadu tel; and then light the wicks. Only then would the celebration truly begin,” he said.
Earlier, Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor had also shared his fondest childhood memories of Diwali celebrations at the iconic R.K. Studio.
Recalling the family traditions, Ranbir said, “Diwali ka matlab khushiyan hain... bachpan se jo Diwali hoti thi, pehle hum R.K. Studio jaate the, wahan ek Lakshmi puja karte the, phir hum meri dadi Shri Krishna Kapoor ko milne jaate the, woh hume mithai deti thi, mujhe paise deti thi jo bahut saare paise the (Diwali means happiness... Since childhood, our Diwali celebrations would begin with us going to R.K. Studios, where we would perform Lakshmi Puja. Then we would go to meet my grandmother, Shri Krishna Kapoor. She would give us sweets and give me money, a lot of money).”
He added that after returning home, the family would perform Lakshmi Puja, while his father would step outside to light firecrackers.
“Jaa ke ghar mein Lakshmi puja karke, papa bahar kuch pataake jalate the, aur phir hum sath mein khana kha ke so jaate the, and this was a perfect Diwali for us (After going home and performing Lakshmi Puja, Papa would go outside and light some firecrackers, and then we would eat together and go to sleep, and this was a perfect Diwali for us),” he said.
‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’ airs on Sony Entertainment Television.