A girl dressed up as Lord Krishna gets her face smeared with colours during celebrations of the Hindu festival of ‘Holi’ in Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh state on March 23, 2024. (Photo by NIHARIKA KULKARNI/AFP via Getty Images)
HOLI, the Hindu festival of colours, was being celebrated with pomp across India and abroad on Monday (25). People were smearing each other with vibrant colours and engaging in dance and music. In many places, dry Holi was being celebrated only with ‘gulal’ (powder colours) because of water scarcity.
On the eve of the festival, people held Holika Dahan, a bonfire lit to symbolise the victory of good over evil. People gather around the bonfire, offer prayers, sing hymns and perform rituals. The festival also saw a touch of politics in many parts of India since this year, the general elections in the country are not too far away. For example, sweets promoting awareness to cast ballots or masks of prime minister Narendra Modi were being sold. People from all sections of the society — from commoners to celebrities — were celebrating the occasion.