Today, buying shares during Diwali Muhurat trading takes just a few taps on a smartphone. But decades ago, the occasion looked very different on Mumbai’s Dalal Street. Brokers gathered at the stock exchange with their families, performed prayers, distributed sweets and celebrated the festival together. Some even arrived in horse-drawn carriages.
(Also read: What is muhurat trading? In its official historical publication, The Temple of Wealth Creation, the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE ) describes how brokers traditionally brought their families to the exchange for Lakshmi Puja and Chopda Puja, a ceremony involving the worship of account books. The celebrations gradually changed as stock exchanges moved towards electronic trading.
Check timing, meaning and other details ) As Indian stock exchanges hold their special Diwali trading session on Sunday, November 8, the tradition, which began in 1957, enters its 69th year. Muhurat trading has been part of India’s financial markets since 1957, according to the National Stock Exchange’s (NSE) November 2024 research report. The report also recalled the remarkable habits of stockbroker Manubhai Maneklal, who reportedly completed 250 to 300 transactions on the trading floor without writing them down, recording the deals from memory afterwards.
