festivals – Safe Holi

In Goa Holi is celebrated as Shigmo

Sat, 25 Feb 2012 10:42:19 +0000

One of the most celebrated events in Goa is the Shigmo festival. It is celebrated all through Goa in a grand manner. The Shigmo festival in Goa lasts almost a fortnight and is celebrated with much joy and fervor among the Goans. The Shigmo festival is known as Shigmotsav in Goa. It is similar to the festival known as Holi that is celebrated in north India. People enjoy this festival by playing with colored powder and water with friends and relatives.The Shigmo festival is celebrated around March every year and the dates vary according to the Hindu calendar that is based on lunar cycles. It is celebrated just before the Catholic time period of lent during which fasting and abstinence from alcohol and other vices is observed. Since the period of lent lasts almost a month, the Shigmo festival is celebrated to indulge in merry making “one last time”. The Shigmo festival starts with the appearance of the moon on the ninth day and ends on the full moon day.

Shigmo festival is celebrated by organizing large fairs and parades in Goa. Many small communities and groups of people come together and prepare colorful tableaux. They dress up as colorful characters and take part in the processions actively with much enthusiasm. Most of these tableaux are based on mythology and many popular legends. Some tableaux also depict important happenings depicted in the holy epics. It is basically a time to enjoy to the hilt and indulge in true festive spirit of Goa.

Holi Celebrations Around The World

Fri, 24 Feb 2012 02:29:18 +0000

Holi, often called the festival of colors, is a spring religious festival celebrated by Hindus where people throw coloured powder and coloured water at each other and make merry. The festival is primarily observed in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and any country where there are large Indic populations.

The tradition of playing with colours on Holi draws its roots from a legend of Radha and the Hindu God Krishna. It is believed that young Lord Krishna was jealous of Radha’s fair complexion. After questioning his mother Yashoda on the darkness of his complexion, Yashoda, teasingly asked him to colour Radha’s face in which ever colour he wanted. In a mischievous mood, Lord Krishna applied colour on Radha’s face, hence the tradition of applying color.

Below are pictures snapped yesterday on the eve of Holi in different parts of the world.

Devotees at the Swaminarayan Temple celebrate the Holi festival of colours with Indian heir to the Swaminarayan Temple, Lalji Maharaj Shri Vrajendraprasdaji Maharaj (unseen) at Swaminarayan Temple in Kalupur, Ahmedabad.

People apply coloured powder to a woman’s face as they celebrate Holi, also known as the festival of colours

Revelers celebrate the Indian festival of Holi on the deck of the ship Peking at South Street Seaport in Manhattan in New York City.

Indian women play with coloured powder during festivities marking Holi in Calcutta, India.

Pakistani Hindu children celebrate Holi at Swami Narain Temple in Karachi.

A Hindu devotee coloured by powder prostrates himself at the Banke Bihari temple in Vrindavan, about 140 kilometers from New Delhi, India. Vrindavan is a famous place for Holi celebrations, where according to legend, the Hindu god Krishna played Holi with his consort Radha.

People react after getting splashed by a bucket of water while celebrating the festival of Holi in Kathmandu.

Children smear coloured powder on each other during festivities marking Holi in Gauhati, India.

Holi Songs

Fri, 24 Feb 2012 00:16:58 +0000

Songs are an extremely essential part of Holi celebrations. Nobody has realized this fact better than our famous film industry.

Bollywood has typically portrayed the mood of Holi from time to time. Hero and heroine getting drenched in colour waters accompanied by hundreds of dancers making merry in the background.

Folk touch in the film songs on Holi have made them all the more popular amongst the masses so much so that the famous Holi numbers have become as much essential part of Holi celebrations as the colours itself.

No Holi celebration can be complete without the famous Amitabh Bachchan number from the film Silsilay. Rang Barse…the song has become the Holi anthem of India.

In the festival which does not recognises any restrictions, the hero, Amitabh openly flirts with his girlfriend, Rekha in front of his wife, Jaya and her husband, Sanjeev Kumar. There was so much fun in that song just as it there in the festival of Holi. Anybody immersed in the spirit of Holi with automatically start humming that number.

An attempt was made to duplicate the magic of that song about two decades later with Mr Bachchan again in the movie Baghbaan, by incorporating the famous folk song- Holi khele Raghubeera..awadh mein Holi khele Raghubeera. The song was an instant success…but no song it seems can manage to reach the height of Rang barse..penned by Harivansh Rai Bachchan.

There are numerous other Holi songs which have made their mark and have become a must when it comes to Holi celebrations. These songs have wonderfully captured the spirit of Holi .