The city resembled a pool of colours with Holi revellers soaked in the spirit of joy and gaiety on Monday. Braving the heat, people gathered all along the Beach Road, which was the main hub of Holi celebrations of all communities.
Smearing each other with colours beyond recognition, the revellers greeted everyone.
Colours kept raining down from overhead at Holi rain dance events at beachside venues of Sandy Lane organised by Chrome and MGM Park, which saw crowds pouring in from morning.
The music, an energetic mix of hip-swinging Bollywood numbers and some fast beat Western numbers, flowed in to ignite the jubilant spirit of the revellers.
Thrill for foreignersInterestingly, small groups of foreigners too came to experience the thrill of the Festival of Colours. For Mckenna, who is here on a short visit to the city from the USA, it was a ‘fun-filled’ experience with colours. “There is so much fun and energy in this festival, we have never seen this before,” she said, who came with her four American friends to celebrate Holi.
About five to six years ago, Holi was celebrated mainly by Rajasthani, Marwari, and Gujarati communities in the city. But change in the culture and acceptance of other festivals was widely prevalent across the city this year. There were private celebrations at several apartment complexes where Telugu families came together and drenched each other in a rainbow of colours.
At Shyam Baba Temple in the One Town Area, Holi was celebrated with flower petals by Marwari, Jain, and Rajasthani families. This custom is being followed from more than a decade at the temple.
Ex-servicemen celebrated the festival at Old Kalyan Mandapam, Sriharipuram. The celebrations started with Ganesh ‘stuti’ followed by an entertainment programme of Holi songs by Hindi Cultural Samiti.
