While all attention is on Chinese incursions of another kind, the Dragon as entered the fireworks capital Sivakasi and is slowly changing the way we celebrate Diwali.

Chinese technology is creeping into the hundreds of factories here. Every worker has been trained in Chinese pyrotechnic - the art of making fireworks. The result - more colour and grandeur, less noise and pollution. 

The traditional aluminum powder has been replaced by gunpowder and this will result in less noisy and less polluting crackers. This year, as high as 40 per cent of the total production will be gunpowder based. "Colours in gunpowder based crackers are sharper. The aerial shots look much more vibrant," says Rajasingh Chelladurai, Director, Standard Fireworks

This way, Diwali will be more about painting the sky and less about noise and haze. ''These aerial fibres cause less pollution,'' says a Sivakasi resident.

"I love the beautiful colours, the paintings they make in the sky," says another.

Imagine. Soon, a fireworks display can be synchronised to your favourite music.