Fah Thai Magazine Mar-Apr 2020

GALLERY
Holi, or the Indian festival of colours, celebrates
the arrival of spring and the blossoming of
love. The day brims with joy, as people drench
one another with coloured water and daub coloured
powder on each other’s faces, all to much boisterous
laughter. Carried away by the raucous fun, even
strangers become friends.
This festival is deeply imbued with Indian philosophy
and mythology, with the vibrant colours and exuberance
signifying the victory of good over evil. Holi is a pan-
Indian affair, but the celebrations reach a crescendo
in the northern and eastern regions.
Dusty north Indian towns like Mathura and
Vrindavan metamorphose into polychromatic
fairylands, their narrow streets splashed in every
hue and filled with people dancing to a frenzy. On
the other hand, in the east Indian city of Kolkata,
the day is celebrated with melodious music and
dance, though the fun is no less intense.
The festival of Holi is steeped in tales of the love
between the Hindu God Krishna and Radha, a day
when temples dedicated to them come alive with
devotional hymns, religious rites and dance. In the
remote northeastern town of Manipur, which has a
huge number of Krishna devotees, tales of their love
are told through melodious performances and subtle
rites, while in Mathura and Vrindavan the same story
is portrayed with a lot more vibrancy and energy.
In more ways than one, the festival of Holi
celebrates the diversity of India.
FAR LEFT
Steeped in tradition
and folklore, Holi is
marked with exuberant
fervour at Mathura
and Vrindavan.
ABOVE
In the university town
of Shantiniketan near
Kolkata, residents usher
in the spring with song
and dance.
FAR LEFT BOTTOM
In Kolkata, people dress
up in spring colours and
splash each other with
coloured water.
LEFT BOTTOM
The spring festival,
known as Dol Utsav in
Kolkata, has become a
cherished part of the
city’s cultural calendar.
BELOW
Residents in the
northeastern town of
Manipur mark Holi with
traditional dance.
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