Trucks in South Asia are painted with “elaborate floral patterns and calligraphy,” Wikipedia notes. In India, common motifs include eagles, kites, a cow nuzzling a calf and the nazar battu. Decorating a truck can cost thousands of dollars.
In 2015 the Maharashtra transport department banned the words Horn OK Please on the backs of commercial vehicles. Millennium Post quoted the reasoning: “It encourages people to honk every time you pass a truck or tempo.”
Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Devdas was released in 2002. About 20 crore rupees were spent on its sets alone. For Paro’s room in a haveli, 12,000 pieces of stained glass were used, Wikipedia reports.
Reports of the total budget differ, from 30 to 50 crore rupees. At the time, Devdas was among the most expensive Bollywood films ever made.
Varak is a foil of pure metal, usually silver, laid on Indian sweets. In 2016 the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India set standards for it. The silver must have a minimum fineness of 999 parts in 1,000. The sheet must be of uniform thickness, free from creases and folds.
No material of animal origin may be used at any stage of manufacture.
During the Dasara festival the Mysore Palace is covered in roughly 100,000 bulbs, lit on each of the nine nights. “The centre of attraction is the illuminated palace lit up with nearly 100,000 incandescent bulbs,” Business Standard wrote in 2014.
The year before, LED bulbs had been used. For 2014 the officials went back to the old bulbs, “the bulbs that light up the places brightly,” a festival officer explained.
Madhubani painting comes from the Mithila region of Bihar. In these paintings, Wikipedia notes, “no space is left empty.” The gaps “are filled by paintings of flowers, animals, birds, and even geometric designs.”
Hindus consider Dhanteras, Wikipedia notes, “an extremely auspicious day for making new purchases, especially of gold or silver articles and new utensils.”
In 2025 the chairman of the All India Gem and Jewellery Domestic Council, Rajesh Rokde, said that “approximately 50 to 60 tonnes of jewellery were sold over the two days of Dhanteras.” The value was “nearly Rs 85,000 crore.”
Rangoli patterns “are usually made outside the threshold of the main entrance, in the early mornings after cleaning the area,” Wikipedia notes. They “are most often made during Diwali” and are “intended to welcome Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and good luck.”
In Tamil Nadu the kolam is drawn every day in rice flour. Tamil Nadu Tourism calls it “a sign of auspiciousness.”
The Banarasi sari is woven with “gold and silver brocade or zari.” “Weaving of brocades with intricate designs using gold and silver threads became the specialty of Banaras,” Wikipedia notes.
In 2009 weaver associations in Uttar Pradesh secured geographical indication rights for “Banaras Brocades and saris.”
A sadya is the feast of Kerala, served on a banana leaf at Onam, Vishu and weddings. A typical sadya has about 24 to 28 dishes in a single course. The sadya at the Aranmula boat race can have more than 64.
“The variety of curries is to symbolize prosperity and well-being,” Wikipedia notes.