The majority of people in India are Hindus, with a large number of Muslims, Buddhists and other religions; Christians make up less than 2.5% of the population, so of course for most people Christmas isn’t part of their tradition. However, even this small percentage means that India has 25 million Christians, as the total population is over a billion. There are also quite large concentrations of Christian communities in certain parts of the country – Mumbai has a large Christian and mainly Catholic community, for example – and where this is the case, you often get quite a Christmas flavour in the area even though Christians don’t form a majority. In Kerala, for example, Christians form more than one in five of the population, so their traditions are quite visible and important in the region.
It is common for Indian Christians to go to an evening church service, especially midnight mass for the Catholics. Usually the family will walk to Mass together and have something to eat at home afterwards. Other customs are similar to those practised in other Christian areas, but with local variations. For example, it is popular to have a Christmas tree, but instead of a fir tree people will decorate a banana or mango tree, or any other smallish tree that is available locally, or just use mango or banana leaves to make decorations. The churches are also decorated with flowers; the most used flower for this purpose is the poinsettia. Other home decorations are also used, especially paper lanterns, and in some parts of South India people put small lights on top of their houses. Some of the decoration ideas are probably also influenced by nationwide Hindu festivals such as Diwali, the festival of light which also takes place in winter. Other traditions are more familiar to western Christians such as displaying a nativity scene or singing carols, though many regions have their own local carols.
And there is a Father Christmas, known under a number of different names such as Baba Christmas and Christmas Papa. Instead of reindeer and a sleigh, the Indian Father Christmas is supposed to bring his presents by horse and cart. Generally, Christmas is a time for giving presents and spending time with your family in India, much like religious and traditional festivals all over the world. It is also a time when your neighbours are expected to come and visit you, so another important part of Christmas is preparing special sweets and little snacks to offer to your guests. There will also be at least one big family meal to celebrate the event.
For non-Christians, especially in some of the larger cities, some people also enjoy the Christmas festivities and may join in with some of the music, decorations and so on. In fact Christmas is still a public holiday in India – this is probably a leftover from the colonial days, but it is another reason why a lot of people, whatever their religious or non-religious background, are aware of Christmas and ready to take some part in the celebration or incorporate elements of it into their own festivities.
Many people think the most interesting place to see an Indian Christmas is Goa, where large music and dance festivals are held in the open, often on the beaches. This is a popular venue for visitors, both from other parts of India and for visitors from other countries who want to experience Christmas in a different way. However, there are so many Christmas traditions in different parts of the country that it would take a long time to explore them all.