Trump Celebrates Diwali With Indian-Americans, Gets Hanuman Chalisa As Gift

India's Ambassador to the US Vinay Kwatra was among those present at the Oval Office for the celebration. The tradition of having a Diwali celebration was started by President George W Bush in 2003.

06 Nov 2026, 19:40 · NDTV

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US President Trump celebrated Diwali in the Oval Office with Indian-American leaders and CEOs
The event included lighting a diya and gifting a Hanuman Chalisa to President Trump
Attendees included Indian Ambassador Vinay Kwatra, chef Vikas Khanna, and IBM CEO Arvind Krishna

What does this event signal for future US-India relations?
Washington:

US President Donald Trump celebrated Diwali at the Oval Office in the presence of prominent Indian-American members of his administration, entrepreneurs and top CEOs, including Sanjay Mehrotra of Micron Technology.

India's Ambassador to the US Vinay Mohan Kwatra, celebrity chef Vikas Khanna, entrepreneur Vishal Gondal, IBM CEO Arvind Krishna, FBI Director Kash Patel, and US National Institutes of Health Director Jay Bhattacharya were among those present at the celebrations on Friday.

The celebrations began with President Trump lighting a diya in the Oval Office during an intimate gathering that included Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Deputy Commissioner of Social Security Administration Arjun Mody.

Among those present were Ruby Dhalla, President and CEO of Dhalla Group of Companies, Rajiv Sharma, founder and CEO of Knack Systems, Viswajith Mallampati, President, Keshavam DC, and Hetalkumar Patel, a guest of the President.

A moment of shared light in the Oval Office. 🪔 Honored to celebrate Diwali with President @realDonaldTrump and proud to gift him with a copy of the Hanuman Chalisa, Tulsidas's hymn to Lord Hanuman that millions of us recite for courage, devotion and strength. As the diyas were lit, my prayer was for friendship between India and America, and for the triumph of light over darkness. Jug Jug Jiyo, a blessing many of us grew up hearing, means "may you live for ages." It is the wish behind everything I do, and today I made it for everyone around the world: peace, prosperity, good health and longevity. Happy Diwali. Jug Jug Jiyo. 🙏 @TheVikasKhanna @DhallaRuby @WhiteHouse
— Vishal Gondal (@vishalgondal) November 6, 2026

White House Events Usher Arvind Chadha was also present at the celebration.

"A moment of shared light in the Oval Office," Gondal, the founder and CEO of GOQii Technologies, said in a post on X.

"Honoured to celebrate Diwali with President @realDonaldTrump and proud to gift him with a copy of the Hanuman Chalisa, Tulsidas's hymn to Lord Hanuman that millions of us recite for courage, devotion and strength," he said.

Gondal, sharing photographs of the celebrations, said as the diyas were lit, his prayer was for friendship between India and the US, and for the triumph of light over darkness.

The tradition of having a Diwali celebration was started by President George W Bush in 2003.

Earlier, the ceremonies were mostly held in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in the presence of Indian-American community members and Indian diplomats.

In 2009, President Barack Obama became the first president to light a diya (lamp) at the White House, during a ceremony in the East Room.

Since then, lamp-lighting ceremonies have been held in various locations in the White House, including the Oval Office and the Roosevelt Room.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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