If you had visited the Swaminarayan Mandir at Willesden on the Hindu New Year you would've probably felt as though you had been transported straight to the Indian heartland. The Ankut ceremony like every year saw a selection of sticky sugar cubes called mithai, fruits carved and hung up in strings and a plethora of savouries served before the Gods. Yarn globes covered every space on the ceilings made by kids as young as two year olds who volunteered for the Diwali preparations.
The celebration was held on a grand scale in the eminent presence of the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, assembly member for Brent Navin Shah, councillors Muhammed Butt and Krupesh Hirani and mayor of business Rajesh Aggarwal among others. Everything prepared from the scratch was started 6 weeks in advance and on average the ankut prasad is distributed among 10,000 people every year on this day. This year however, due to the regeneration project beside they did not have the seating arrangement to accommodate as many people. At a time when funding for these celebrations have massively suffered due to the government's cuts on the austerity drive, councillor Butt had praised the Hindu Society for celebrating the event regardless of the budgeting issues.
“We will have to remember that for the last 8 years this government has been cutting off the austerity. In Brent council by 2020 I will have lost 79% of my funding. Since 2009, I have lost £164mn so I have to prioritize education, social care among others.” councillor, Muhammed Butt said to Asian voice.
But at the same time the council has also not been assisting when it comes to renting out the community spaces.
“There are staffing costs associated with these celebrations that you cannot do away with and that need to be met which is why at the Brent council we have charity rates of renting out these community spaces.”
“We are much more stronger than what the government is doing to us. The council has been working with the mandir and we are helping support with infrastructure in terms of parking, making sure of road closures and ensure that events like these happen in a safe atmosphere.” the councillor continued.
But unlike every year, this year the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan graced his presence for the first time after assuming office. The mayor was greeted in the traditional Indian manner with a garland and a tilak on his forehead. After delivering his Diwali wishes to the worshippers present at the temple, he proceeded to offer the quintessential ankut aarti.
Talking about how Diwali is the celebration of the victory of the good over the evil, and in light of the recent spate of knife crimes, the Mayor said-
“We can't have a situation where the young people think it's okay to pick up a knife or a good thing to join a criminal gang and for then assume that they will not be caught. And it's important that we are tough on those carrying knife! The police are working incredibly hard with the stop and search and one of the reasons why I am so supportive of this temple here is because they help the youth by giving them constructive things to do and things to do after class!”
The ankut ceremony resumed the same after the Mayor's departure with more families turning up in the afternoon.
Sanjay Khetani, Swaminarayan Temple Willesden, said, "It was great meeting the Mayor of London today. To me, Diwali is the time when we spend time with family members and friends. We exchange gifts with each other and look forward to the year ahead.
“Diwali is celebrated when Ram, Sita and Lakshman return from their 14 years in exile. Upon their return, candles were lit on the ground so they could see the road ahead in the dark.”
