Why can't India have a week-long Diwali holiday? Viral post sparks debate

An X user has called for a week-long Diwali holiday across India. The proposal has fuelled debate over travel costs, limited leave and work-life balance.An X user's post about getting a week-long Diwali holiday has gone viral. (representational photo from Unsplash)New Delhi,Nov 9, 2026 08:28 ISTA two-day Diwali break might be enough to light a few diyas and exchange sweets, but what about those who have to travel 1,000-2,000 km to get home? A social media user has sparked a discussion about India's work culture by arguing that the country needs a week-long Diwali holiday, much like the Christmas-New Year break in the West.In a post shared on X, the individual argued that a longer festive break would allow people living hundreds or even thousands of kilometres away from their hometowns to spend the festival with their families.Drawing a comparison with Europe and the US, where many workplaces observe an extended holiday period around Christmas and New Year, the user wrote, "Just like Europe and the US have culture of holidays from Christmas to New Year, India should have a culture of having a week-long holiday for Diwali every year."The post also highlighted the practical difficulties faced by employees who want to travel home for the festival but cannot afford to take extended leave. "Here you're staying 1000-2000 km away from hometown, train takes 30-40hrs one way and you can't get leave for more than 2 days from your boss. Flight tickets are 20-30k one way, your salary can't afford it anyway," the user wrote.Pointing out the irony of promoting Indian festivals globally while making it difficult for people to celebrate them with their families, the individual added, "We can't even celebrate festivals with our parents and family and then we talk about promoting our festivals globally." The post also took a dig at India's demanding work culture, with the user arguing that employees were left dealing with stress even during important festive occasions."With this work culture, all we can promote is work stress and sadness even during our festivals; no wonder we are so low in the happiness index," the post read.See the post here:The suggestion has since attracted considerable attention, with thousands of users weighing in on the importance of work-life balance and longer festive breaks. Many agreed that employees should have more time to travel home and celebrate important occasions with their loved ones.One user pointed out that extended religious holidays are not limited to Western countries, writing, "Not just Western countries. I worked with an Egyptian client, and they have holidays for Eid and Bakrid for the whole week."The discussion has once again brought into focus a familiar dilemma for India's workforce: balancing professional commitments with the desire to be present for family and festivals.- Ends