Christmas in India
While Christmas isn’t as prominent in India as other festivals due to the relatively small population of Christians, Christmas celebrations are happening in December. However, as India has over 1 billion people living in it, even a tiny Christian population of 2.3% makes up a whopping 25 million people.
Christmas in India is referred to as Bada Din or big day, and midnight mass is part of many people’s Christmas eve traditions. The churches are decked out in vibrant poinsettias and sparkling candles.
Afterward, there is a huge feast spent with family and friends. One traditional Indian Christmas dish is a biryani made with rice and meat. Consider serving up some fragrant biryani for your own Christmas celebrations!
For dessert, people celebrating Christmas in India have kheer, a traditional dessert made with either rice, vermicelli, or cracked wheat. It’s comparable to a thinner version of rice pudding and has raisins and nuts mixed in.
Christmas Gift Traditions in India
Gifts follow the delicious meal, and Santa often delivers them from a horse-drawn cart (sorry, reindeer!). Due to the many languages spoken in different parts of India, you’ll hear Santa referred to as every Christmas Baba (Hindi), Christmas Taathaa (Tamil), Natal Bua (Marathi for Christmas Elder Man), and much more.
As people prepare for Christmas in India, many receive new clothes as gifts in preparation for the festivities. We all want to look our best.
Christmas Decorations in India
In India, families often decorate their homes with banana or mango leaves rather than with Christmas trees. This is because mango trees are considered especially sacred in India, and their leaves are used to decorate homes on every holy occasion. Additionally, you’ll find small clay oil-burning lamps dotted throughout the house to symbolize baby Jesus as the light in the world.
Sometimes people also add cotton wool to their Christmas decor to imitate the look of snow.
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