Diwali has always been a grand family affair at Ramayan, Sonakshi Sinha’s parents’ home in Mumbai. This year, it is going to be extremely special for the actress as she will be celebrating it for the first time there with her husband, Zaheer Iqbal.

Beaming with joy, Sonakshi tells us, “It’s my first Diwali post marriage and it feels extremely special because finally I am celebrating it with my husband. We do Diwali puja at home and then spend time with the family, and this time we have a new member (Zaheer), so it’s going to be all about love and togetherness. What I am excited about the most is that it will be Zaheer’s first Diwali in Ramayan (Zaheer screaming from behind… as a married man!). Well, you can sense his excitement. I will also have folks from my sasural joining us.”'

For Sonakshi, the festival has always been about lights and colours. Sharing memories from her childhood, the Heeramandi actress says, “I have always enjoyed doing rangoli. I would sit with my house help and come up with creative designs. I would also love decorating diyas and arranging the mirchi lights. I never enjoyed bursting crackers because early on, it was instilled in us that bursting crackers isn’t good for the environment. Also, we had dogs, and they would be scared of crackers. We only did one shagun ki phuljhadi to kick start the festivities.”

Ask Sonakshi if she is keen to host Diwali bashes with Zaheer in the future, and she is quick to add, “We really want to, but both Zaheer and I are bad planners. I don’t think we have the patience to put together a party. We put all our planning skills to use when we got married and I think we are done for a while (laughs).”

Just like Sonakshi, Zaheer, too, enjoys celebrating the festival and has fond childhood memories of it. She says, “Zaheer grew up in a building where every year, the kids would get together and celebrate Diwali. Since then, he goes back to the building every year to celebrate with the friends he grew up with. He loves the festival because it is all about togetherness, and we have so many friends who keep hosting get-togethers where people have a great time.”