New York, Oct 7 (PTI) A new book for children about Diwali by an Indian-American author aims to spread awareness about the festival's cultural traditions, highlighting the message of inclusivity and diversity.

"A Kids Book About Diwali" is authored by Chhavi Arya Bhargava, an Indian-American entrepreneur and former elementary school teacher.

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In an interview with PTI, Bhargava underscored that she was inspired to write a book on Diwali as she wanted to "create something that every child, no matter what their background is, could pick up and immediately connect with".

"For those who celebrate Diwali, I wanted them to feel seen and to feel like they belong, and for those who do not, I wanted them to understand the festival and how they could join in the celebration," she said.

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The book on Diwali is the latest addition to the popular book series "A Kids Book About" by A Kids Co. Bhargava noted that there are 170 books in the "A Kids Book About" series, which tackles important topics and aims to help parents and educators have meaningful conversations with kids.

She describes "A Kids Book About Diwali", with its core themes of beliefs, identity, joy, inclusivity and sharing, as a "guide to understanding how traditions can unite us -- light overcoming darkness, good triumphing over evil, knowledge over ignorance, justice over inequality -- these are universal messages".

She said she wants readers to "feel that connection to these values, no matter what cultural background they have".

"And I hope that they walk away with a sense of curiosity and pride -- curiosity about the world around them, and pride in their own or others' cultures. Diwali is for everyone.... it is an inclusive holiday."

In a historic move, Diwali has been declared a school holiday for New York City public schools beginning this year. Last year, New York State Governor Kathy Hochul had signed legislation making Diwali a school holiday for the city's public schools.

With Diwali being celebrated across all regions and religions, Bhargava stressed that the book is about the celebration of Diwali as well as its message of inclusivity, which is "super important, especially during this time where we all feel divided. We want to feel united".

Diwali is a rich holiday filled with amazing traditions, and this is a book that explains it all to anyone ... whether they celebrate the holiday or just want to learn more about it, she said, adding that the book is inclusive of many faiths who celebrate the holiday, including Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists.

Elaborating on what prompted her to write the book, Bhargava said while there are some fiction books on Diwali, she had not found many non-fiction books about the festival of lights.

She added that in her research, she had talked to about 300 South Asian mothers and asked them to explain the significance of Diwali. While most of them spoke about traditions, fireworks, "Rangoli", feasts surrounding Diwali, "more than half could not tell me the significance of Diwali and the story behind it".

"There are so many stories out there from different regions of India" about Diwali but many people still do not know about it.

"That was really important to me. I thought that the book would be just a refresher for a lot of the moms and it was a great tool to teach children," she said, adding that people reading this book "are going to learn something from it, whether you are a child, a teenager or an adult, you will learn something from 'A Kid's Book about Diwali'".

She said it is important for schools to actively celebrate and put Diwali in their curriculum, but not as an afterthought.

"You cannot have awareness without education. You cannot have inclusivity without awareness. So all of that ties in together," Bhargava said.

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