Leaders' Wishes 2026

Share your Diwali message with Melbourne

Submit a community announcement for Namaste Melbourne!, or a greeting for the Leaders' Wishes wall and the festival-day screens.

Submit your message (opens in a new tab)Submission requirements

20,000+ celebrated on festival day
12,000+ newsletter readers
6 Indian languages

Festival-goers cheering at the front barrier during an evening performance at Melbourne Diwali, Marvel Stadium

A classical dancer in a purple costume and gold jewellery smiling at Melbourne Diwali

Friends in festive outfits smiling together at Melbourne Diwali

Festival daySat 31 Oct2pm to 10pm, Marvel Stadium Square

Two ways to take part

Make news

An announcement

Something new that directly benefits people who celebrate Diwali, or makes Australia more welcoming.

Nick Reece, then seeking re-election as Lord Mayor, used the Melbourne Diwali Launch in 2024 to commit $10 million to establish a Little India in Melbourne. See it on the wall

Send it as

Signed letter on your letterhead, any length
Or a video, any length

Where it goes

An excerpt your office approves, with a link to more details, to more than 12,000 Namaste Melbourne! readers
Translated into Hindi, Punjabi, Gujarati, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam
Your office sees every translation before it goes out

Share your announcement (opens in a new tab)

A Diwali wish

Your Diwali greeting to the people who celebrate the festival.

Send it as

Signed letter on your letterhead, ideally around 150 words
Or a video of up to 60 seconds

Where it goes

The Leaders' Wishes wall on this page
The big screens at Marvel Stadium Square on festival day

Share your wish (opens in a new tab)

Count the words in your wishAround 150 words is ideal. Announcements can be any length.

Your wish

0 words. About 150 is recommended.

Before you send

1
Prepare it
An announcement: a signed letter or a video, any length. A wish: a signed letter on your official letterhead, ideally around 150 words, or a video of up to 60 seconds.
2
Add the details
The name and title to publish, a photo to go with your message and, if you like, up to four links to your website and social media.
3
Upload it
Use the form, choosing an announcement or a wish first. It takes a few minutes.

Files

Letter: signed, on official letterhead. PDF preferred.
Video: MP4 or MOV, filmed landscape (16:9) for the big screens. We add captions.
Photo: a JPG or PNG headshot or official portrait, at least 800 pixels wide.
Large video? Paste a link to YouTube, Vimeo, Google Drive or Dropbox instead, set so anyone with the link can view it.

Publication and approval

Who receives it: The Melbourne Diwali team.
What is published: The name, title, photo, message or video and links you give for publication. The office contact details in the form are for us only and are never published.
Edits: We publish your message as you send it. If anything needs to change, we send the edited version to your office, and it is not published until your office approves it.
In the newsletter: Namaste Melbourne! carries an excerpt of your announcement, in your own words, with a link to more details. As with any edit, your office approves the excerpt before it is published.
Translations: Announcements are translated into Hindi, Punjabi, Gujarati, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam. We send the translations to your office before the newsletter goes out. If your office flags nothing within 2 working days, they are published.
Videos: We add captions. Nothing else in a video is changed without your office's approval.

Keep it

Respectful
About Diwali and the families who celebrate it
Written submissions on official letterhead

Leave out

Campaigning, or appeals for votes or donations
Criticism of others
Advertising, slogans, and party or campaign logos

After you submit

You see a confirmation on screen.
Within 2 working days, we email your office to confirm we have your message.
If anything needs to change, we send it to your office for approval first.
For an announcement, we send the translations before the newsletter goes out.
When your message is published, we email your office the link.

Leaders' Wishes wall

Diwali wishes from our leaders

Cassandra Fernando MP
Federal Member for Holt

From previous years

Diwali messages and announcements shared with Melbourne Diwali in earlier years, most recent year first. Announcements come first, then wishes in alphabetical order. Titles are as held at the time.

Brad Battin MP
Leader of the Opposition, Member for Berwick
2025
Namaste. Shubh Deepavali. It's great to be here celebrating with you this amazing festival of Diwali. As a proud representative of the community of Berwick and Clyde North, I get to go to so many…
Cr Roshena Campbell
Deputy Lord Mayor of Melbourne
2025
Can I say, on behalf of the City of Melbourne, what a joy it is to see you all gathered here today for Diwali. We are so proud of our Indian community. You add life…
Cr Shivali Chatley
Councillor, City of Greater Bendigo
2025
It is a true honour and an immense joy to share the Diwali afternoon as well as the evening with you all. As we all know, Diwali is a demonstration of the victory of light…
Senator Bridget McKenzie
Senator for Victoria
2025
Lovely to share the stage with you to celebrate Melbourne Diwali. I live in regional Victoria, and I know there's going to be Diwali celebrations in households and communities right across our beautiful state. To…
Nicholas Reece
Lord Mayor of Melbourne
2025
A Happy Melbourne Diwali to all who celebrate this joyful gathering. Our city shines especially bright during Diwali – thanks to our vibrant Indian community. Marvellous multicultural Melbourne is home to Australia's largest Indian population…
David Southwick MP
Member for Caulfield
2025
It is wonderful to be here. This is my third year at Melbourne Diwali here at Marvel Stadium. It's such an important festival, and you know the best part about it is all of the…
The Hon Natalie Suleyman MP
Minister for Small Business and Employment
2025
It is wonderful to be here, joining families and of course everybody, an opportunity to celebrate your tradition, your culture. And where would we be without Diwali? In a world where we can see challenges…
Nick Reece
Lord Mayor of Melbourne
2024
Announcement · At the 2024 Launch
“I have said I will be investing $10 million to establish a little India here in Melbourne.”
Namaste. Happy Diwali. This year Diwali is going to be bigger and better than ever before here in Melbourne and there's no better place to celebrate than here in Docklands, right in the centre of…
City of Melbourne
Welcome message
2024
Celebrate Diwali – the festival of lights – at Marvel Stadium Square this year. The festival focuses on the messages of hope and joy and brings the community together. Come along with your friends, family…
Cassandra Fernando MP
Federal Member for Holt
2024
Good evening everyone. Namaste. Twenty-five years ago, when I came to Australia as a migrant, Diwali wasn't like this. We are so lucky as migrants to live in one of the most multicultural countries in…
The Hon Natalie Hutchins MP
Minister for Women
2024
Happy Diwali to everyone here. I'm so pleased to be here. I know this is all about happiness over darkness, really celebrating with family and making the most of what we have in our beautiful…
Dr Sushil Kumar
Consul General of India, Melbourne
2024
Namaskar, and a very good afternoon to all of you. I am delighted to join you all here to celebrate Diwali in this beautiful Marvel Stadium. Diwali is one of the most celebrated Indian festivals…
Trung Luu MP
Member for Western Metropolitan Region, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Multicultural Affairs
2024
I want to say thank you so much to Melbourne Diwali for opening this festival for the Indian community and the wider community to celebrate Diwali. Diwali is celebrated across the world by the Indian…
Daniel Mulino MP
Federal Member for Fraser
2024
Can I just wish everybody a happy Diwali… It's a really important festival, Diwali, the victory of good over evil, of light over dark, of wisdom over ignorance, and I think these are really important…
David Southwick MP
Member for Caulfield, Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party
2024
Our Indian community is so strong. It is full of goodness, passion and love, and Diwali is all about goodness over evil. It is an important time for all of us, and the symbol of…
Sally Capp
Lord Mayor of Melbourne
2023
…even though Diwali happens just once a year, the themes of hope, the themes of enlightenment and the themes of peace are things that we need to practise and focus on each and every day…

Melbourne Diwali 2026 opened at Parliament House on Friday 9 October, and the Launch set the tone for a bigger and better festival this year. Festival day is Saturday 31 October at Marvel Stadium Square, where more than 20,000 people celebrated together. This year's theme is Resourcefulness, guided by the lives of Sri Ram and Mata Sita.

About Diwali

Diwali, the Festival of Lights, celebrates the victory of light over darkness and good over evil. It marks the return of Sri Ram, with Mata Sita and Lakshman, to Ayodhya after fourteen years in exile, when people lit rows of lamps to welcome them home; in southern India it also recalls Krishna's victory over Narakasura.

On Diwali evening, families perform Lakshmi Puja, praying to Goddess Lakshmi for prosperity and wellbeing. Hinduism is one of the few major living faiths in which the Divine is worshipped in female form, and Lakshmi Puja is the heart of the festival.

On the same day, Sikhs mark Bandi Chhor Divas and Jains the nirvana of Lord Mahavira. Diwali 2026 falls on Sunday 8 November. More than 370,000 Victorians are of Indian heritage.

See you at the festival

The platform is yours

Saturday 31 October 2026, 2pm to 10pm, Marvel Stadium Square

Submit your message (opens in a new tab)

Questions, or prefer email? Write to Gautam Gupta at ggupta@melbournediwali.com.au