Hindus

India’s Festival of Lights — is celebrated by Hindus worldwide, and often by Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists, too. The holiday is increasingly popular in the United States, where the traditional diya (clay lamp) symbolizing the triumph of good over evil is seen from coast to coast.

Until today, the Muslim and Hindu cultural exchange has been so strong in the villages of Barmer and Jaisalmer districts, that it becomes almost close to impossible to segregate a Muslim from a Hindu or a Hindu from a Muslim from just their attire or language.

The 2014 Deepavali celebration in New York City

CPD Research Fellow Deborah Trent on the Indian diaspora in the U.S. and its role in PPPs