Delhi elite gamble with luxury cars, high-end properties at Diwali card parties

Diwali in Delhi is serious business. The national capital, home to some of the country’s richest, is no stranger to lavish festive parties. Haute couture, heavy lehengas, world-class chefs, enough food to feed a small nation, expensive fresh flowers for decor – all of this in some of the city’s most opulent homes and farmhouses – would not raise any eyebrows. It’s only to be expected during Diwali, the season of endless parties.
However, an often underreported aspect of these gatherings is the high-stakes gambling that goes on at Diwali card parties in Delhi.
Some Delhi-based fashion designers, witness to these high-stake card parties, spoke to The Nod about what goes on inside.
Designer Siddartha Tytler recalled standing like a “waiter” as he watched a member of the Delhi high society wager his Rolls-Royce in a game of poker.
“The hardcore guys start gambling weeks before Diwali,” Tytler revealed. “The women are cautious. They don’t play with their jewellery or anything like that. They lose their pot, and once they’re done, they’re done. But the men tend to go overboard. Hence the car keys,” he told The Nod.
Designer Abhinav Mishra concurs. “The card games can get surprisingly intense. Even properties are up for the taking. It can quickly go from friendly to competitive!” Mishra told The Nod.
The parties often take place at some of Delhi’s poshest neighbourhoods, in the sprawling Chhatarpur farmhouses of industrialists or the estates of Sainik Farms. Guests enjoy not just some delicious food but also extravagant decor.
“I once saw a Champagne fountain, surrounded by these extravagant floral arrangements. They’d also flown in a really well-known international chef to design the menu,” designer Abhinav Mishra recalled.
The highlight of these Diwali parties is often a star performer – someone of the calibre of Sukhbir or AP Dhillon to entertain guests.
“The big, industrialist parties go all out,” Tytler shared. “Honey Singh, Guru Randhawa—I’ve seen Sidharth Malhotra and Shah Rukh Khan dancing, you name it.”