When I started thinking about activities to do for the party, I came across the story of Rama and Sita. I thought it was such a charming little story that I would tell it to the girls, and have them make a Diwali lantern as one of the activities for the party. Here is the story: I found the Coloring pages on Activity Village. I printed them out, and had Sophie color them before the party, so we had a visual for the girls. Once upon a time there was a great warrior, Prince Rama, who had a beautiful wife named Sita. There was also a terrible demon king, Ravana. He had twenty arms and ten heads, and was feared throughout the land. He wanted to make Sita his wife, and one day he kidnapped her and took her away in his chariot. Clever Sita left a trail of her jewellery for Rama to follow. Rama followed the trail of glittering jewellery until he met the monkey king, Hanuman, who became his friend and agreed to help find Sita. Messages were sent to all the monkeys in the world, and through them to all the bears, who set out to find Sita. After a very long search, Hanuman found Sita imprisoned on an island. Rama's army of monkeys and bears couldn't reach the island, so they began to build a bridge. Soon all the animals of the world, large and small, came to help. When the bridge was built, they rushed across it and fought a mighty battle. When Rama killed the evil Ravana with a magic arrow, the whole world rejoiced. Rama and Sita began their long journey back to their land, and everybody lit oil lamps to guide them on their way and welcome them back. Ever since, people light lamps at Diwali to remember that light triumphs over dark and good triumphs over evil. We told the girls the story, and then they got to make their own lantern. I was going to set up tables, but thought it would be easier on the floor. They really liked it, and the lanterns were so creative! I had all the kits ready in advance. I put them together using modeling clay in a medium sized bag, and then the jewels and candle in a smaller bag... all stapled together with cute paper. Like I have said before... I am a control freak, and I wanted to make sure all the girls got the exact same amount of everything. It also makes things run more smoothly to have it all separated and ready to go beforehand. You might also want to look at: Indian / Bollywood Party - Part 1 {Invitation} Indian / Bollywood Party - Part 2 { Indian Princess Doll Favor} Indian / Bollywood Party - Part 3 {Princess Beds and Taj Mahal} Indian / Bollywood Party - Part 4 {Indian photo shoot} Indian / Bollywood Party - Part 5 { Decor and Dress} Indian / Bollywood Party, Part 6 {Diwali Lanterns and Rama Sita} Indian / Bollywood Party - Part 7 {Footless (barefoot) Sandals} Indian Bollywood Party - Part 8 {Mehndi (henna tattoo)} Indian / Bollywood Party - Part 9 {Bollywood Dancing} Have a Happy and Creative Day! Risa I am linking: Sun Scholars