Diwali Before Diwali ?

I spent most of this week in Diwali parties at office, back to back. It was fun, and I enjoyed it. But one question kept nagging me: why are we celebrating Diwali before Diwali?

Every party followed the same script:

Dress up → take pictures → exchange gifts → eat → post on Instagram/LinkedIn → go home.

It felt performative. Somewhere in all of it, I couldn’t find the festival.

Have we started treating festivals as events rather than occasions?

An event needs decorations, clothes, food, gifts and photographs. An occasion asks us to pause and remember why it matters.

To be fair, there’s a practical reason. We celebrate at office early so we can be fully free for family on the actual day. That’s fair.

But I still wonder why we’re so eager to perform the celebration, and so rarely stop to think about what we’re celebrating.

I hope I’m wrong. If you think I am, open to change my mind.