Ten Spectacular photos from the Diwali Celebrations at KMC Greens, Manipal 2012

Cracker Show at KMC Greens, Manipal — Sun burst - A dazzling display of fireworks was put up by Manipal University for the benefit of its staff ans students at the Kasturba Medical College, Manipal Greens on Nov 13th 2012.

The name “Diwali” is a contraction of the word Deepavali, which means row of lights in Sanskrit. During the holiday, candles and oil lamps called “diyas” are lit to commemorate the legend of the return of the Hindu god Rama to his kingdom after 14 years in exile after victory over the ten-headed demon Ravana.

The bursting of crackers and the smoke that ensues provides a spectacular visage for the light to pass through.

The lights represent the triumph of good over evil and through this festival Hindus worship Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth.

At the **KMC** **Manipal** Greens, students and staff and their families turned up in large numbers to take part in the spectacular fireworks display put up by **Manipal** University. In this photo, students light crackers to celebrate the festival of lights!

Diwali, the festival of lights, is a delight for photographers. With celebrations & festivities in full swing, all places are lit up with beautiful lamps, people are dressed in gorgeous new clothes and the skies are lit with colourful fireworks!

Lights form a major part of this festival and the University officials kept the lights on at The Heritage building opposite the **KMC**, **Manipal** Greens.

Fireworks fascinate everyone; kids, adults and more so if you are a photographer. And you can relive those colourful moments by capturing them well.

Falling sparks from **Diwali** cracker show provide for a spectacular sight at the Kasturba **Medical** **College**, **Manipal**, Greens on November 13th **2012**.

Don’t take your camera/lens too close to the candle/lamp flame as this would not only add a flare to your picture but also damage the glass.

The revolving firecracker called the “chakri” comes in two versions, one that’s lit up on the ground and one that’s lit up suspended in the air. These are a delight to watch and offer great entertainment. In the photo a cracker is lit up at the **KMC**, **Manipal** Greens.

While shooting firecrackers, make sure you keep a safe distance from the launch point. With a tripod & focus set on the sky, you would not be able to notice anything coming your way.

Of course to put up a dazzling display of fireworks, people behind the scenes play a huge role in its success. In this picture, the silhouette of a person lighting up a firecracker is captured at the Kasturba **Medical** **College**, **Manipal** Greens on November 13th **2012**.

In the Sikh tradition, Diwali commemorates the release of Guru Hargobind, the sixth Sikh Guru, who was imprisoned by the Mughal emperor Jahangir. When Guru Hargobind arrived in Amritsar, his devotees lit thousands of oil lamps to celebrate his return. For Sikhs, this day is known as Bandi Chhor Divas (day of release from prison). Sikhs celebrate Diwali by lighting oil lamps and reading from the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh holy text.

During **Diwali** it is common to set off fire crackers as the noise is believed to herald the defeat of evil and catch the attention of the gods. In this photo a shower of sparks lights up the sky over Kasturba **Medical** **College**, **Manipal** Greens.

Traditional sweets, known as mithai, are in heavy demand during Diwali. Among them include Karanji, a pastry stuffed with dried fruit, semolina and coconut, Laddoos (ball-shaped sweets), Puran Poli ( sweet stuffed flatbread), poori (fried bread), Gulab Jamun (sticky ball-shaped dessert), kheer (Indian rice pudding) and Jalebi (deep-fried chewy dessert).

A Golden shower of sparks fly of from an Air “Chakri” at the Kasturba **Medical** **College**, **Manipal** Greens. The fireworks display lasted for one hour and began at 7 PM. However, the celebrations continued long after that.

Diwali marks the start of the new Hindu financial year. During this time many businesses open new accounts books and on the third day of the festival businessmen in some states worship their accounts books and work laptops. This ritual is called “Chopda Pujan”, and blesssings are sought from Hindu deities Lakshmi and Ganesha.

Another ‘Rocket’ burst in the skies over **KMC**, **Manipal** greens sends out a shower of red!

Typically fire crackers are set off from dusk, often throughout the night. The noise is believed to herald the defeat of evil and catch the attention of the gods.In Mumbai, the rich celebrate it with a lot of pomp. We witness huge fireworks and can get such fancy crackers.