Diwali is five days of lamps, sweets, visits and long evenings with family, and for a lot of households it is also a reading season. Marathi homes wait for the Diwali ank, the fat special issues magazines publish every year. North Indian families read the story of Ram's return to Ayodhya. And school holidays leave time for the long novel that has been sitting on the shelf since last year.
Here are twelve books for the festival, grouped by what you want to do with them. Where a book is public domain in India we say so. The rest make good Diwali gifts.
For the story behind the lamps
In much of North India, Diwali marks Ram's return to Ayodhya after his exile and the defeat of Ravan. In Maharashtra and the south, the festival also remembers Krishna's victory over Narakasura on Naraka Chaturdashi, and in Maharashtra the day after Lakshmi Puja is Bali Pratipada, honoring the generous king Bali.
1. Tulsidas, Ramcharitmanas (c. 1574)
The end of the Lanka Kand and the opening of the Uttar Kand tell the return and coronation. The Awadhi verse is centuries old and free. A printed edition with a Hindi meaning beside each verse is the easiest way to read it.
2. F. S. Growse, The Ramayana of Tulsi Das
A complete English prose translation by a British civil servant posted in Mathura in the 1870s. Old-fashioned, but complete and public domain. Scans are on the Internet Archive.
3. Rabindranath Tagore, Gitanjali (1912)
Not a Diwali book as such, but these short prose poems are full of lamps, dark nights and waiting, and a few read aloud at dusk suit the evening of Lakshmi Puja. Tagore's own English version is free on Project Gutenberg.
For reading aloud with family
4. Premchand, Do Bailon ki Katha (1931)
Two bullocks, Hira and Moti, escape a cruel master and make their way home. Children laugh at it and adults notice what it says about freedom. Public domain in India.
5. Premchand, Idgah (1933)
A festival story, though the festival is Eid: a small boy at the fair spends his money on tongs for his grandmother instead of sweets. Many families read it at every festival because it is about giving. Public domain in India.
6. P. L. Deshpande, Vyakti ani Valli (1962)
Pu La's character sketches are the classic Marathi family read-aloud. Pick one sketch per evening and let a different person read each night. In copyright, so buy a copy and keep it on the family shelf.
7. Lakshmibai Tilak, Smritichitre (1934 to 1936)
A memoir of an eventful marriage, full of household comedy and real feeling. Older relatives often remember it from their own youth. Public domain in India.
For a short play to stage
8. Bharatendu Harishchandra, Andher Nagari (1881)
A one-act farce set in a city where everything sells at the same price and the king hands out justice at random. It needs a handful of actors and no set, so cousins can put it on after dinner. Public domain in India: Bharatendu died in 1885.
For the Marathi Diwali ank
9. This year's Diwali ank
The first Diwali ank is usually dated to 1909, and today hundreds of special issues come out each autumn, from literary magazines to humor, food, travel and children's titles. Pick one or two, read them through the holiday, and pass them on. They are current publications, so buy them from the publisher or a bookshop. See our Marathi literature guide for more on the tradition.
For the long holiday afternoons
10. Sane Guruji, Shyamchi Aai (1935)
A son remembers his mother in a Konkan village, one night's story at a time. It is a book about a family home, which makes it a natural Diwali read for anyone who has traveled back to one. Public domain in India since 2011.
11. Premchand, Godaan (1936)
If you have a week off, this is the one Hindi novel to finish. Hori the farmer and his family carry the book, and its picture of village debt and pride has not dated. Public domain in India; English translations are in copyright.
12. Shrilal Shukla, Raag Darbari (1968)
For readers who want something funny and sharp, this comic novel about a small town near Lucknow is still the benchmark. In copyright, and a good gift.
Giving books at Diwali
Diwali is a traditional time for gifts, and books by living or recently living writers are the best way to support the people who keep Hindi and Marathi publishing alive. Most of the in-copyright books above are available in inexpensive paperback editions, and many publishers sell e-books too.
For the public-domain classics, a nicely printed edition is still a good present, and you can share a free text with anyone. Our guide to where to read for free lists sources such as Hindi Wikisource, Hindi Samay and Marathi Wikisource.
A plan for the five days
| Day | Festival | Suggested reading |
|---|---|---|
| Dhanteras | Shopping and cleaning | Buy a Diwali ank and one gift book |
| Naraka Chaturdashi | Early bath, first lamps | Andher Nagari, read or staged |
| Lakshmi Puja | The main evening | A few poems from Gitanjali, then the Ram homecoming from the Ramcharitmanas |
| Bali Pratipada or Govardhan Puja | Visits | A Pu La sketch read aloud |
| Bhai Dooj (Bhau Beej) | Brothers and sisters | Do Bailon ki Katha, a story about two loyal companions |
The order of the days varies a little by region, and some years the festival falls across six days. Adjust freely. The picker on our homepage can suggest more books if none of these fits your family.
Questions readers ask
What is a good book to read aloud to children at Diwali?
Premchand's Do Bailon ki Katha, about two runaway bullocks, works well for children who understand Hindi, and it is public domain in India. In Marathi, a few chapters of Shyamchi Aai suit older children.
Which part of the Ramcharitmanas tells of Ram's return to Ayodhya?
The return comes at the end of the Lanka Kand, after the war, and the Uttar Kand opens with Ram's homecoming and coronation. Many families read these sections, or recite the Sundar Kand, during the festive season.
Where can I buy a Marathi Diwali ank outside Maharashtra?
Many Diwali ank publishers sell by post and online during October and November, and some issues are released as e-books. Marathi community associations abroad often order them in bulk for members.