The True Holi Colours

With 2013’s We Are One Colour Festival and The Colour Run, South Africa has joined the global dye-tossing trend. Locally as well as globally the Hindu tradition-inspired events have, however, not gone down without controversy. We Are One Colour Festival — initially Holi One Colour Festival — omitted ‘Holi’ from their name, the for-profit organisers of The Colour Run are accused of falsely advertising charity, and many who are familiar with the traditional event claim that the Western spin-off is commercialising Hindu culture. With this in mind, we’d like to take a moment to highlight the origins of the playful paint-splatter riot.

Image: thecolorrun.co.za

In Hindu culture, the spring festival Holi has been mentioned as early as in the 4th century and celebrates the winning of good over evil. Its meaning is traced back to Prahlada, a saintly boy from the Puranas who ignored his demon king father’s arrogance. His evil aunt Holika — whom the festival is named after — tries to punish Prahlada by tricking him into getting burnt, yet through natural intervention Holika dies and Prahlada doesn’t.

Interestingly, in the Braj region of India, the festivity pays tribute to Hindu deity Krishna, who is cursed with a dark blue skin colour because a she demon poisoned him with her breast milk. He is scared that fair skinned girls won’t like him because of his skin colour, so his mother asks Radha to colour her face in any colour Krishna wanted.

Image by funylool.com

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Either way, it’s typically held in March and celebrates a sense of relief — the end of winter and arrival of spring. It’s seen as an opportunity to let loose, disregard norms and indulge in carefree activity — a concept that can be easily translated into a Western party binge it seems. While the We Are One Colour Festival is a whole day dance event complete with international electro DJs who play music in the name of love and togetherness, The Colour Run is a five kilometre paint-filled collective jog that claims to promote healthiness, happiness and individuality. Although the original Holi festival might be the least religious of Hindu holidays, it’s nonetheless reasonable to ask, is such an appropriation of tradition respectful?

While, arguably, the birth of Jesus Christ in Western culture is used as an excuse to splash our end-of-the-year bonus on outrageous gifts, it might cause a stir though if someone organised a manger dress-up party where attendees got sloshed on olibanum-flavoured cocktails. Yet, alternatively, what is wrong with taking a feel-good concept from one culture, sharing it with another and making some of money off it?