Gates and stalls open
Come in through Gate A on Marigold Street. Councillor Meera Joshi lights the first diya at 4:15, Food Lane fires up and the info tent hands out free festival maps.
Eastgate Indian Cultural Association presents
Rangoli SquareDiwali Mela
A neighbourhood festival of lights: 24 food and craft stalls, a plaza-wide rangoli contest, garba under the lanterns and fireworks to finish. Free for everyone, so bring your whole street.
Gates open Saturday 7 November at 4 pm
- 🎪 24 stalls
- 🏆 36 rangoli plots
- 🪔 600 diyas to light
- ♿ Step-free site
Sat 7 Nov
Saturday 7 November 2026Diwali weekend, rain or shine
4 pm
4 pm to 10 pmStalls open at 4, fireworks at 9:30
📍
Rangoli Square, EastgateMarigold Street entrance, 3 minutes from Eastgate station
27 days
Gates open Saturday 7 November, 4 pm
27days
00hours
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🕓 The day, hour by hour
Six hours of light, one Saturday
Everything on the main lawn runs to this clock, and the stalls stay open all evening. The board follows your device's time; pick a demo time to see how the day looks at any hour.
Showing your device's clock as if today were mela day (Saturday 7 November).
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4:00pm
🎪 -
5:00pm
🎨 Rangoli contest: the plaza becomes a canvas
Thirty-six teams colour their plots with powder, petals and lamps while the judges stroll. Spectators are welcome to watch, ask questions and cheer. Sign-up is open until the plots run out.
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6:30pm
🏆 Judging, winners and a garba warm-up
Prizes are announced from the stage, then a 15-minute lesson teaches the three steps you need for the circle. Absolute beginners and two left feet are the whole point.
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7:00pm
🥁 Garba and dandiya
DJ Kiran and the Eastgate Dhol Collective keep the circle turning for a full hour. Dandiya sticks are free to borrow at the stage; flat, soft-soled shoes are kindest to the plaza.
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8:00pm
🙏 Lakshmi aarti and the wall of diyas
Pandit Ramesh Shastri leads the evening aarti with bells and a thali for everyone to pass. Afterwards, light a diya on the wall and make a wish for the year ahead.
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8:30pm
🎇 Mithai hour and the sparkler corner
Last orders on hot jalebi, a lantern walk round the plaza and a supervised sparkler corner for families. Fire marshals are on hand and grown-ups hold the lighter.
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9:30pm
🎆 Fireworks finale
Twenty minutes of fireworks from the south lawn, fired by licensed pyrotechnicians. Everyone stays behind the barriers and faces the stage. Ear defenders are free at the info tent.
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9:50pm
🫶 Closing circle: Shubh Diwali
A thank-you from the volunteers, a last round of applause for the stallholders, and the final diyas carried out to light the way home. Gates close at 10 pm.
✨ Running all evening
- ✋Henna lane4 to 9:15 pm. Cones from $5, full designs from $10.
- 🖌️Diya paintingCraft tent, 4:30 to 7 pm. Free kits for all ages.
- ☕Chai laneKulhad chai and filter kaapi until 9:45 pm.
- 😊Little ones' cornerFace paint and story tent, 4 to 8 pm.
🪔 After the aarti, 8:05 pm
Light a diya on the wall
Six hundred hand-painted clay diyas line the north wall of the plaza, filled by the volunteers and lit by you. Children light the first row, neighbours the rest. Try it here: tap a diya, or light the whole little wall at once.
0of 24 lit
🎪 Food Lane, Sweet Row and Craft Row
Twenty-four stalls, one very hungry square
Every stall is run by a local family, society or small business, and everything on Food Lane is vegetarian. Filter by what you're after, then ask for a stall card at Gate A to plan your route.
🔍
Showing all 24 stalls
🔍
No stall matches that yet
Try "chai" or "lantern", or clear the filters to see all twenty-four.
1ST
Prizes, paid as Eastgate shop vouchers
🏆$300First place
🏅$150Second place
⭐$75Third place
❤️$100People's pick
How the judges score
- Creativity and idea30%
- Colour and craft30%
- Symmetry and detail20%
- Theme: "Lights of Home"20%
Judges: Kavita Deshmukh (folk-art teacher), Arjun Mehta (Eastgate Art College) and Rosa Delgado (mural artist).
🎨 Contest, 5 pm to 6:30 pm
Colour the square
Thirty-six plots, ninety minutes, one theme: Lights of Home. Enter solo or with a team of up to four, pick your style, and we'll hold a plot (and a colour kit, if you like) with your name on it.
- 🕓Check in 4:30 to 4:55 pm at the Rangoli desk on the Rangoli Ground.
- 📏Plots are 4 by 4 ft for solo and pairs, 6 by 6 ft for teams of three or four.
- 🌸Powder, petals, rice flour, lentils and small diyas are welcome. Chalk, glitter and paint are not: the plaza is washed down after.
- ♿Step-free plots near Gate A, with table-top boards for artists who prefer not to kneel.
81%
7
plots left of 36. They go quickly in the week before.
#30
You're in!
A confirmation with your plot map is on its way. Bring a photo ID for your team lead at check-in. Plots not claimed by 4:55 pm go to the waiting list.
🖌️ Craft tent, 4:30 to 7 pm
Paint-a-diya workshop
Pick a plain clay diya, a brush and a palette of pink, green and gold, and decorate your own. Takes 40 minutes, dries while you wander, and it's yours to carry to the wall of diyas at the aarti. Free, for all ages; under-8s paint with a grown-up.
🥁 Stage lawn, 7 pm to 8 pm
Garba, dandiya and one very big circle
The circle starts small and grows until it wraps the whole stage lawn. You don't need to know a single step: the 6:30 warm-up covers the basics, and the person next to you will happily fix your clap.
- 1Do taali: two claps, step inClap twice, step to the right, bring your feet together.
- 2Teen taali: three claps, turnThree claps and a half-turn with arms wide. Eyes on the person ahead.
- 3Dandiya: sticks up, partner tapTap your partner's sticks at shoulder height, then swap sides on the beat.
💎DressColour is the dress code: chaniya choli, kediyu, or your brightest jumper.
💓FootwearFlat, soft-soled shoes. The plaza floor is smooth stone.
🎵SticksFree dandiya sticks at the stage. Please return them to the basket.
🎆 The finale
Fireworks at 9:30 pm. Sharp.
Twenty minutes of fireworks from the south lawn, fired by licensed pyrotechnicians while the whole square watches from behind the barriers. Music from the stage, lights down, phones up.
9:30 pm
Photo by Gabriel Mihalcea on Unsplash
Launch at 9:30 pmLawn fenced from 9:00 pm. Take your spot by 9:15.
Sparkler corner, 8:30 pm
Supervised by fire marshals: one bucket of sand and water per bay, one adult per child, gloves provided. Take your sparkler from the marshal, never from a pocket.
Photo by Rohit Photography on PexelsA fenced 200-foot launch zone
The south lawn is fenced from 9:00 pm. Marshals in orange vests close it, and nobody crosses until the all-clear. Never lift a barrier, even for a lost shoe.
Best views
Stand on the stage lawn or the north steps and face south. The food lane and the wall of diyas sit outside the fallout area.
Little ears, big bangs
Free ear defenders for children and anyone sensitive to noise at the info tent. The quiet zone on the library steps has a clear view and a softer sound.
Pets
Fireworks frighten animals, so please leave pets at home. If they must come, keep them leashed and use the quiet zone. Assistance dogs are always welcome.
First aid, all evening
Trained first-aiders and a medical tent beside the info tent, open from 3:30 pm until the last guest has left.
Wind check at 9:00 pm
If gusts top 20 mph the show slips to 9:45 pm. We'll announce it from the stage and the info tent, and on the info line, 555-0142.
🤝 The mela runs on neighbours
Run a stall or lend a hand
Twelve stall pitches are still open and we need 22 more volunteers. Pick a side below: both take under two minutes.
Photo by Zoshua Colah on UnsplashWhat you get
- 🍽️A Food Lane dinner token for any stall, on us.
- 👕A saffron mela T-shirt to keep. Sizes XS to 3XL.
- 👥A buddy and a briefing. Every shift starts with ten minutes of hand-over and a cup of chai.
- ❤️Your name on the thank-you wall at the closing circle, if you'd like it there.
🤝
Thank you!
Pitches and rules
- 🏷️$45 craft and community pitch (10 by 10 ft, table and a canopy).
- 🍲$90 food pitch. Needs a food-hygiene certificate and public-liability cover. Everything sold on Food Lane is vegetarian.
- ⚡Power: six pitches have sockets, first come first served.
- 🔥Gas and flame: a gas-safety certificate, a fire blanket and an extinguisher are required.
✅
Application received
📍 Plan your visit
Free to enter, easy to find
The plaza sits between Station Road and the canal, a short walk from Eastgate station. Tap a pin to see what's where.
StageFood LaneFireworks lawnInfo and aid
P
Marigold Street
Lamp Lane
Eastgate canal
Station Road
🧭Tap a pin or a row below. The plaza is about 600 feet from Gate A to the fireworks lawn.
55°F
A typical November eveningDry and crisp. Bring a shawl or a jacket; heaters line Food Lane and the stage lawn.
Free entry, no ticket
Walk in any time from 4 to 10 pm. RSVPing only helps us plan queues, toilets and bins. Re-entry is free the same day.
By bus, train or on foot
- 🚌 Buses 14 and 22 stop on Station Road, two minutes away.
- 🚆 Eastgate station is an 8-minute lit, step-free walk.
- 🧭 Free shuttle from the station every 15 minutes, 3:30 to 10:30 pm.
Parking and bikes
Eastgate Multi-storey (P1) is $6 flat after 3 pm, four minutes' walk. Fourteen accessible bays on Lamp Lane are held free. A staffed bike valet at Gate B is free too.
Accessibility
- ✔️ Step-free route from Gate A to every stall and the stage.
- ✔️ Wheelchair platforms at the stage and the fireworks lawn.
- ✔️ Quiet zone on the library steps, ear defenders free.
- ✔️ Sign-language interpreter at the 6:30 stage welcome and the aarti.
- ✔️ Large-print timetables, accessible toilets, assistance dogs welcome.
Questions?
Info line 555-0142 (10 am to 6 pm before the day, 4 to 10 pm on it) or mela@eastgate-ica.example.
🎟️ Free, no ticket needed
Tell us you're coming
An RSVP is not a booking, just a headcount. It helps us order enough chai, open enough toilets and decide how many marshals stand at Gate A. It takes ten seconds.
51%
1,284
of the 2,500 neighbours we're planning for have RSVP'd.
🎉
You're counted!
❓ Before you come
Good questions
🎟️Is it really free?▾
Yes. Entry, the rangoli contest, the diya-painting workshop and the shuttle from the station cost nothing. You only pay for food, drinks and whatever you buy from a stall.
🍲Is the food vegetarian? What about allergies?▾
Everything on Food Lane is vegetarian, and many dishes are vegan or Jain-friendly: use the filters in the stall directory. Every stall posts an allergen card. Sweets often contain nuts, so please ask before you buy for someone with an allergy.
☂️What if it rains?▾
The mela runs rain or shine. Food Lane and Craft Row sit under awnings, the stage has a roof, and ponchos are free at Gate A. If a thunderstorm warning is in force, the fireworks move to Sunday 8 November at 7 pm and we'll say so on the info line.
🎇Can I bring my own fireworks, sparklers or lanterns?▾
Please don't. The only fireworks are the licensed show at 9:30 pm, and the only sparklers are in the supervised corner at 8:30 pm. Sky lanterns and open-flame lanterns are not allowed on the plaza.
🐕Can I bring my dog?▾
Assistance dogs are always welcome. Pets are better at home on the night because of the fireworks; if yours must come, keep them leashed and use the quiet zone on the library steps.
👥We're a group of twenty. Can we all come?▾
Of course. Each RSVP takes up to 12 people, so send two for a bigger group. For temple, school or office outings of 30 or more, email the info line so we can mark a meeting spot at Gate A.
🚲Where do I leave my bike or pram?▾
There's a free staffed bike valet at Gate B and a buggy park beside the info tent. Prams and wheelchairs can use every path on the plaza.
🤝Can my business sponsor the mela?▾
Yes, and thank you. The Eastgate Indian Cultural Association is a volunteer-run non-profit. Local businesses can sponsor a rangoli plot, a lantern string or a slice of the fireworks fund. Write to mela@eastgate-ica.example.
🪔
🎟️ RSVP, it's free
See you in the square
Diwali is the story of light finding its way home. For one evening, Rangoli Square is that home: a little louder, a lot brighter, and open to everyone who walks in. Bring someone who has never been.
👵Kamala IyerChair, Eastgate ICA
🧔Dev MalhotraMela director
👩Aisha RahmanVolunteer lead