India is a secular country - which basically means that all religions are equally respected by the State. This makes India a melting pot of Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Jews, Buddhists, Jains, Zoroastrians and others. And since the State proclaims secularity - many of the Big festivals of the different religions are declared as Holidays and celebrated nationally. Christmas is one such holiday.
There are a large number of Christians in India. But they are not the only ones who celebrate Christmas. In India - we are just looking for an excuse to rejoice. And you will see a lot of Hindus also jumping into the Xmas spirit and lighting up their homes, buying gifts and in general celebrating Life !
This film was shot in Pune, India - and while Pune has many churches and they all had some form of midnight mass celebration - we were not allowed to film it. So the film really shows you more of the festive decorations up in the market places and the general street gaiety. But there is a significant aspect of the Christmas celebration that we were unable to film - the singing of carols, church prayers, banquet dinners, mid-night mass, decorated christmas trees - much like you celebrate in the west.
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