One of India’s most important festivals, Diwali, will be celebrated at Missouri University of Science and Technology with a cultural show, fireworks and an authentic Indian dinner on Sunday, Nov. 6. Popularly known as the festival of lights, Diwali represents the triumph of good over evil. The annual event is sponsored by Missouri S&T’s India Association, an Indian student organization.

Tickets for Diwali Night 2011 are available from the Leach Theatre Box Office, located in Castleman Hall, 10th and Main streets, in Rolla. Tickets will be sold from noon-1:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 24, and from noon until they run out on Tuesday, Oct. 25. Dinner tickets are $7 for students and $10 for others. Show tickets are $3 for all. There is a limit of two tickets per student ID. Get your tickets early as they go quickly for this event.

The festival will begin with a cultural show featuring traditional Indian dances at 4 p.m. in Leach Theatre of Castleman Hall. A fireworks display will follow at 6:15 p.m. near McNutt Hall. The dinner will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the St. Pat’s Ballroom of the Havener Center.

The word Diwali comes from the Sanskrit word “Deepavali,” meaning row of lamps. Houses and shops are illuminated by earthenware oil lamps called “diyas,” which are placed in windows, doors and outside of buildings. The festival includes feasts, fireworks and prayers for a prosperous year ahead.

Additional information about the event can be found online.