Holi festival celebrates end of winter

A stream of people dispersed from the Asian Culture Center and trickled down Woodlawn Avenue on Wednesday after attending the Holi Festival.

The festival, celebrating the coming of spring, was put on by the ACC, and visitors were welcomed by a band that played traditional Indian songs.

Afterward, a student presented the origins and significance of Holi, which finds its roots in Hindu tradition.

Junior Aaki Bhargava and sophomore Nishi Patel explained the story.

The gods granted a boon to a king, saying he could not be killed day or night, inside or outside, by man or animal. The king grew arrogant and began to demand that his subjects worship him, Bhargava said.

His son, however, stayed loyal to the gods.

The king grew angry and tried to have him killed. His son survived each attempt, including being burned in a bonfire.

Eventually, the king’s subjects celebrated his son by throwing colors. This is the traditional origin of Holi that celebrates spring and also loyalty in the face of adversity.

“It’s like a day thing,” Bhargava said. “People usually wear white because the colors show up better.”

The celebration included water balloons, colored powder and water guns, which shot dye at celebrants, as well as rangoli, colorful paintings on the ground made with the colors that would later be thrown.

Attendants at the Asian Culture Center were treated to a color fight where they threw, rubbed and generally attacked other festival goers with color. Afterward, they were treated to Indian snacks including jilabi, which is a sweet, orange pretzel-like dessert.

Another dessert, a sweet and flaky layered delicacy topped with pistachios, was served.

More than 50 people attended the event, said Mai-Lin Poon, a graduate assistant at the ACC.

Junior Sonam Thadani has also celebrated the festival in India.

“As soon as we came home from school, we’d change into our white clothes and go out,” she said. “You can throw anything at anyone. Very carefree.”