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<\/p>\nA teenager who decided his town's "horrible" Christmas lights were too dull has spent the last year creating his own display.<\/p>\n
Annoyed with the "dark and boring" decorations in Sutton, Saman Zand took it upon himself to bring some festive cheer.<\/p>\n
The student said he has always been fascinated with Christmas lights and wanted to do something for his community.<\/p>\n
So Saman, who was born and raised in the south London town, began the project at the start of 2021.<\/p>\n
And his efforts have paid off, as sparkling Christmas lights now course through Sutton – which have even been credited with reducing crime.<\/p>\n
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Saman, 17, said: "I've now essentially built the entire display by assembling a team of volunteers from the local community who build or assemble Christmas lights.<\/p>\n
"I was born and raised in Sutton, and have lived here all my life.<\/p>\n
"It took an incredible amount of fighting to put my lights up, especially as a 17-year-old.<\/p>\n
"I just didn't know who to approach or who to talk to about it.<\/p>\n
"The first people I approached were so positive about me and my plan, and eventually I got the approval of the mayor of Sutton, who essentially pushed my project and secured some funding from the local committee budget.<\/p>\n
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"I've had so much support from the local councillors who helped me so much, and I'm so grateful for that help.<\/p>\n
"We became a very close-knit team fighting to light up Sutton, and put Christmas lights in new areas.<\/p>\n
"When I was a kid, I used to love the Christmas decorations as I thought they were so magical.<\/p>\n
"I loved them so much that I even one day tracked down the old lights that used to hang in the town centre and got one of them for myself.<\/p>\n
"I've been fascinated by Christmas lights since I was a kid.<\/p>\n
"When I was four I remember going to the ceremony where they turn them on and just wanting to get some for myself, I was never interested in whatever celebrity was turning them on or the Santa there.<\/p>\n
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"I ended up pressuring my dad into buying one when I was ten off the contractors."<\/p>\n
Saman hopes to expand the operation to reach more places and add more decor, as the council has invited him to organise next year's lights too. <\/p>\n
He said it was his personal experience of the lights in Sutton as a youngster – which he enjoyed – which prompted his decision.<\/p>\n
"I thought we had had horrible Christmas lights in the last I've years compared to what we had when I was a kid," he said.<\/p>\n
"The town square has traditionally been unlit and is quite a dark, boring area. There used to be a bandstand there but nothing happens there anymore.<\/p>\n
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"It was such a great potential location, but so underused. We'd had a lot of crime issues there and it seemed like the perfect place to get started.<\/p>\n
"Since we put up the lights we've got great feedback from the council and local businesses.<\/p>\n
"I went around the local businesses and played dumb asking about the lights, and they all said that people loved them, and that people keep stopping to look at them.<\/p>\n
"Illegal activities have also seemed to stop or be less common now it's a lot brighter, so I think it's been a win-win.<\/p>\n
"I've kept a low profile about my part in the project, but obviously a few people at school caught onto the fact I was doing it so most people there know about it.<\/p>\n
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"Most of my classmates aren't too bothered about it, one because they don't really care and two because it's not exactly the most exciting or cool thing to do.<\/p>\n
"But some of my friends who say it's cool that I got it all done but I don't think anyone knows about the amount of effort that goes into a project like this.<\/p>\n
"My aim was never to get credit though, but to make my local community happier in general. I don't mind that people don't know what I've done – I just care that it's happened."<\/p>\n
The project has received "hundreds of pounds" of funding from the council, Saman said.<\/p>\n
Sutton Council has been approached for comment.<\/p>\n