History of Diwali on Trafalgar Square (DOTS) 

Unaware of how illustrious their dream was destined to be, few friends had a vision of sharing the spirit of Diwali with the world, beginning with London. The spirit of love, sharing and celebrating in harmony.

The unlikely place where this vision came to fruition was in Sri  Nitin Palan's ( founder member) dining room in the year 2001 where these friends met and they later they each held a candle on Trafalgar Square with a prayer .

A handful of participants took part in the first celebration in 2001. Today 18 years on, DiL has several organisations with members representing a cross section and multicultural communities of India and consistent ‘full capacity’ participation on the square.

These members personify the spirit of Diwali by working together in perfect harmony to bring DOTS to the Londoners every year, working hard to make each year distinctive, more exhilarating and enjoyable than the previous one.

What was once the vision of few people is now the vision of several like-minded but diverse organisations and we continue to work together (and having fun while we do so) along with the office of the MAYOR OF LONDON to share with Londoners the best of Diwali