Celebrating Holi in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, India
Holi or Festival of Colors is a Hindu festival that celebrates the triumph of good over evil, bountiful harvest, and fertility. While this festival is now celebrated all over the world, it is perhaps most fervently celebrated in the city of Mathura which is located in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The ancient city of Mathura is rich in history and it is believed that Lord Krishna was born here in an underground prison. During the Holi, colored water is sprayed, and colored powder is thrown as a blessing and expression of love.
Much Love for Mathura
Mathura is a photographer’s dream and we had no sooner than arrived in the city when I spotted a man in a tricycle rickshaw headed towards us. This image is one of my favorites in our DREAMS of INDIA collection. As we continued to familiarize ourselves with the small town of Govardhan, I captured an image of the Haridev Temple situated beside Mansi Ganga Lake.
Click, Click, Click!
Everywhere I looked there were photos to be taken and I was a busy man! On the narrow street were devotees laying on the pavement to measure the length of their body, standing, then moving to where their outstretched hands had been, then prostrating themselves and repeating the action again. Our liaison told us that these were pilgrims and that they would repeat this action until they reached in the town Barsana, the hometown of Khrishna’s lover, Radha. Radha taught selfless love and surrender and is worshiped as a Goddess in her own right. She is considered to be the embodiment of the Divine Love that is the source of Lord Krishna’s power.
It was the day before the official start of the Holi and the locals were in a festive mood. They were eating and buying the essentials for the celebration including color powder and sweets.
Day of the Holi
We awoke early the next day and smeared coconut oil over our bodies and hair as we had been instructed. Much to our horror, we both had developed severe head colds. Like many of the other journos in town, my camera and I were wearing a thin plastic raincoat. I didn’t like the idea of having color powder thrown on my face or camera and I started to become full of anxiety. As we all know, worrying often generates a self-fulfilling prophecy.
We headed to the aforementioned town of Barsana, where a different spin on the Holi is celebrated and is called Lathmar Holi. The tradition of Lathmar Holi is based on the legend that once when Krishna visited Radha’s village and teased her, the women beat him with sticks to drive him away. In modern times this story is reenacted as women playfully beat men with sticks (called lathis) and in some cases, capture them. After being captured, the men are forced to wear women’s clothing and dance in public. I was prepared for this and had spent long hours with a Bollywood dance coach perfecting my dance moves (#FakeNews).
The Holi Adventure Begins
On a Mission
We were on a mission to photograph the events at the Shri Ji Temple and proceeded through the narrow crowded streets. On the way, we were blessed with color powder and colored water fired from Pichkaris.
Looking ahead I could see the Shri Ji Temple, just beyond one last narrow, blind passage. I saw women in their beautiful saris headed towards us from the temple and since they weren’t covered with powder I forged ahead.
Mayday! Abort Holi Mission!
Just as we had turned the corner, everything changed. I heard Fon let out a yelp, and as I turned to look at her powder covered face and ask what was wrong a small boy threw a handful of green powder in my mouth. Next, I could see policemen beating a few men with sticks and a crowd of people was now pushing towards us from the temple. Realizing that getting beaten with a policeman’s stick wouldn’t entitle me to dance in women’s clothing and fearing for our safety, we took refuge in a nearby doorway.
We were both coughing clouds of green powder and I was feeling like I had had enough love and blessings for one day, so we headed back to our waiting car in defeat. Moments later we were laughing, knowing that all-in-all we had had a great time at Holi and had built memories to last a lifetime. I have no idea why the policemen were clobbering some people with sticks, but from past observation of India’s usually patient police force, I figured that the beatings were probably well-deserved and overdue.
Below is a fine colection of Holi songs and movies ~TURN IT UP!
Namaste & Happy Holi!
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About the Authors
Photographer George Edward Giunca, and his Thai wife have traveled around Thailand armed with a circular fisheye lens to create a photo essay on the rich cultural diversity, and abundant natural beauty of the Kingdom of Thailand. Fleeing from angry water buffaloes, slapping huge mosquitoes, watching exotic festivals and religious rituals, gorging on delicious spicy food, applying aloe vera cream to sunburned skin, wading through rice paddies, getting drenched to the bone by heavy monsoon rains, and gawking at breath-taking scenery; made it a journey of epic proportions! The result is the book, THAILAND 180º. Later, they traveled extensively through Myanmar, Malaysia, and India, gathering a massive collections of 180º photos. They currently live in Chiang Mai where they continue to blog and are now working on a CHIANG MAI 180º book.
Here’s How to Order Your Copy of THAILAND 180º Collectors EditionToday!
In Thailand —>>>http://www.thailand180.com/thaiorder.html
The Rest of the world: We are offering our book on Amazon.com, below list price and I’ll pay for the shipping within the United States! http://amzn.to/1knDPRR
Not Familiar with Our Book???
This show details the origin of 180 Books, a series of art/travel books illustrated with a circular fisheye lens. By using infographics, pictures from our THAILAND 180º book, and never seen before images from our vault, we’ll demonstrate this unique lens and present our unique books.
Also, because there’s nothing to watch on TV, here’s a trailer about our book, “THAILAND 180”
Above is an interactive map of Thailand. If you click on a marker it reveals a photo from our THAILAND 180º book and a link to our blog article about the photo. Go Ahead~ Start Exploring ~Have Some Fun!
