Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, is usually a grand celebration in Guyana with an iconic motorcade being among the highlights of the local festivities.
This year, after the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the annual celebrations, the motorcade and a suite of other activities are returning to Guyana, President of the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha (GHDS) Dr. Vindhya Persaud told the News Room on Friday.
It all starts on Saturday at the Kitty roundabout in Georgetown, for the ‘Deep Jale’ show.
Dr. Persaud promised that this event promises to deliver some of the best local, indian cultural performances while food and other items will be on sale. The Guyana Police Force band will, this year, join the event.
“It’s not only the act of switching on the lights symbolically but it is ushering in the whole Festival of Lights and starting off this period of prayer, cultural presentation and an environment that allows us to be in a harmonious, peaceful environment,” she highlighted.
After this event, motorcades across the country will get underway from Saturday.
Dr. Persaud reminded that Guyana’s motorcade, which was first held almost 50 years ago, is an “iconic” part of the local festivities and is among the most unique activities across the region.
Motorcades will be held in various areas across the country, culminating in the grand motorcade from Campbellville, Georgetown to La Bonne Intention (LBI), East Coast Demerara on Sunday, October 23- the eve of Diwali.
Because the motorcades have become a staple part of Guyana’s cultural activities, Dr. Persaud believes that its return this year will enthral thousands of people.
More importantly, she said the collective anticipation and adoration of this particular activity by Guyanese of all walks of life is a perfect example of the cohesion that should always be strived for. The motorcade, she said, becomes more than a Hindu festivity here in Guyana.
Accompanying that grand motorcade is also a cultural show at the LBI centre ground, where the motorcades will eventually end their journey.
Finally, rangoli competitions across the country, including the Georgetown inter-schools rangoli competition slated for Wednesday at the Dharmic Kendra in Prashad Nagar, join this year’s celebrations.
I cannot wait for the motorcade and other person-to-person festivities to return to our country. When I think about the glitter, pomp and ceremony and the socializing of the nation as a whole, it brings a smile to my face in anticipation of what will happen come days of pre-Diwali and Diwali day. It would be celebrations unheard of.