As a child growing up in Northern India, chef Pradeep Singh said there was always a special kind of magic in the air as people celebrated Diwali.The five-day celebration, known as the Festival of Lights, saw relatives gather for prayer and fireworks and exchange gifts.As a youngster, the best part of the holiday for Mr Singh was enjoying food and sweets.His mother would typically make lots of vegetable curries. His favourite included potatoes, onions, tomatoes and spices green and black cardamom, coriander and cumin seed and lots of ghee (purified butter).Now the chef is gearing up to make a Diwali-style feast at Indigo Restaurant in Flatts on Tuesday and Wednesday.On offer will be cultural treats like pakoras, vegetables dipped into a spiced gram flour batter, then deep-fried.Mr Singh said he plans to make a total of eight appetisers.Meaty options will include murg malai kebabs, cubes of chicken breast, marinated with ginger, garlic, yoghurt and cashew nuts and machhi amritsari, rock fish breaded with gram flour, Indian spices and deep fried with a side of mint sauce.An Indian salad called ‘kachumber’ which blends a mixture of fresh onion, cucumber and tomatoes with lemon juice, coriander and olive oil will also be on hand to start, as well as traditional mixed green and garden salads.Mr Singh said the main course would include chicken, lamb and fish curries and two vegetarian optionsThere will also be a lentil dish, plenty of rice and three varieties of naan bread.For dessert, you can sample the 'suji ka halwa' using semolina, a type of wheat used in breakfast cereals and puddings, cooked with sugar, water and dry fruit.Or perhaps try the rice pudding dish known as ‘kheer’, made with milk, rice and saffron.The chef said the desserts wouldn’t be as sweet as they are in India.“[Their] sweets are too sweet because the food is very hot because of the variety of spices they use [and they offset that with rich desserts].“If you go to India the food is quite different, but here the people eat more mild food so the level of sweetness is also down.”Mr Singh said he’s learned the type of dishes locals are used to during the five years he’s worked at Indigo.However, many of those served at the Diwali event will be as similar as possible to the originals. “I want to show them real Indian food,” Mr Singh said.Belcario Thomas, the restaurant’s project manager, said the event gave people an authentic taste of what the celebrations were about and have been wildly successful in the past.“First and foremost if you are an Indian food lover this is the culinary event to enjoy,” he said. “All our four Indian chefs will be putting their attention into making authentic food for everyone to enjoy.“There will also be the cultural ambience and Bollywood music playing upstairs and downstairs and festival lighting — all in a family friendly environment.”For Mr Singh the festivities will be like a small taste of home.“The whole year we would be waiting for this. It’s a big festival in India and we give a lot of gifts like your Christmas.“There is also a lot of [people] spending money and this time in India if you visit you can feel that happiness in the market as well. [There is] lots of shopping and lots of colour.”Indians typically start cleaning and painting their homes 15 days before the festivities, and begin putting up string lights five or six days before Diwali, he said.As teenagers his brothers would have competitions in lighting to see who could decorate the house the best.They would also have friendly bets to see who could afford the most fireworks, with money given to them by relatives.“When you’re a child and you don’t have that much tension or worries you can enjoy more of the festival,” he said.“Your parents give you money and they will buy more fireworks, but now that I have become a father, my kids enjoy it more than me. I am happy watching them enjoy the festival.”The Diwali buffet menu at Indigo Restaurant costs $40 per adult and $20 for children between the ages of five and 12.Children under five eat for free. Reservations are available on 292-9800 or reservations@indigo.bm.