Simione Tuvuki 
As Lotus takes the spotlight during the Festival of Lights, it has generated short-term income for 23-year-old Kinisalote Nai and her family of Narere in Nasinu.
Lotus is the symbol of prosperity, associated with the Goddess of Wealth Lakshmi.
Nai who was selling lotus along Mark Street in Suva today says her family have been selling the flower during Diwali for almost a decade.
“Every Diwali, we sell lotus to generate income for our family. It has been eight years that I have been selling lotus. It is to buy food, especially for the children.”
Nai says it has become an affair for the family, where both the children and family are involved with the harvest and sale of lotus to followers of Hinduism.
She says they sell lotus for a dollar each and would generate over $200 a day.
The flower is used to worship during Puja for Laxmi on Diwali, and the demand from devotees has always provided short-term income during the Festival of Lights.
