The Academy Gathers to Celebrate Holi, the Hindu Festival of Colors
Austin DeSisto / The Exonian
By CARLY CANSECO, ERIN HAN and ISHAAN SINGH
On Sunday, April 27, Exeter came together on the Academy lawn to celebrate Holi, a Hindu holiday also known as the “Festival of Colors.” As a day to celebrate love and friendship, the triumph of good over evil, and to rid oneself of past errors while meeting new people, the festival involves throwing colored powder and water balloons.
Although it was only a two-hour event, six weeks of planning by several community members, facilitated by Reverend Bonnie Casey, were dedicated to organizing the celebration of Holi.
“I think it would be important to note how collaborative an event like this is,” Casey stated. “We worked with dining services, and Monica herself made the mango lassi. The facilities, building and grounds [staff] were also a big help. They assisted us on the Friday before Holi, they came out and they brought the right hose in order to bring the water source from the Academy Building up into the lawn. There were so many people who contributed, from those who printed the flyers to Amy downstairs, who helped order T-shirts for us.”
Senior Advay Nomula, one of the students who served on the planning committee, recalled, “After emailing the Hindu Society and Subcontinent Society email groups asking for anyone interested in Holi planning, a small committee formed to plan it. We met, along with Reverend Casey, three or four times during Thursday lunch the month before Holi, planning logistics and methods of publicizing Holi.”
Lower Maya Shah, another student organizer, explained, “We began planning it three or four weeks before, and met every Thursday with Reverend Casey to go over what we needed, the inventory, what we had and what we needed to order, and how we would set it up.”
Austin DeSisto / The Exonian
“There were approximately eight of us students helping plan Holi, and Reverend Casey and Ms. Towey-Landry were two adults who were incredibly helpful — we wouldn’t have been able to make it happen without them,” added upper Siri Bompelli.
Overall, organizers and attendees alike felt that the celebration was an enormous success. “I think the event was amazing; so many people showed up, and there were people running around, chasing each other with powder and water balloons. There was a lot of laughter, and overall, everyone seemed to be having an incredible time,” said Bompelli. “I believe we successfully captured the joy and fun of Holi, and I’m really happy about that.”
“You can’t stop the chaos once one person throws powder at someone else — it’s a beautiful effect,” Nomula said.
“Some people came in early to set up with the powders, and as soon as all the powders were open, everyone just started playing with colors. Towards the end — probably one of my favorite parts — was when everyone was dunking each other with water,” recalled lower Gowri Nair.
Lower Dylan Richardson, another student attendee, described, “There were tables of pigments out, and we just kind of started at the event pretty quickly when people arrived — throwing water balloons, throwing color at each other. Everyone was all bright and colorful. It was really great — just a wonderful atmosphere, wonderful event.” He added, “It was also one of the first warm, sunny days of the year, [so it was especially nice that] we were all out playing where the water and the colors were out.”
Having events that cater to the diversity that Exeter nurtures strengthens our community. Casey noted the significance of the event, saying, “It was a celebration of the season and a beautiful day out. We struggled through a long March, so it’s a celebration that we can all participate in. It was also just great to see kids frolicking and not being serious.”
For some students, the Holi celebration helped them stay connected to traditions they celebrated back home. “For me, it was super significant because it felt like a big piece of home,” Shah commented. “There [were] a lot of members of the Brown community and I was really happy about that. I think that for American-born Indians and Pakistanis as a whole, [we] are kind of looking for our sense of home and a community where we belong. That really was what Holi encompassed: a way for us to bring our traditions and our cultures [to Exeter]. We ate our food and we danced our dances and we sang our songs and even though there were a lot of people who weren’t Brown there, it was a way for us as the Brown community to just have fun and be with each other and celebrate that.”
Nomula, who was instrumental to the execution of the event, also stated, “We’re moving in the right direction in reestablishing Holi as a main campus event.” He continued, “There’s footage of older Holi celebrations with a lot of people crowding tables in Weth Quad, having a really fun time. I want to be able to recreate that. As long as Hindu Society is consistent in hosting Holi every year, I’m sure the attendance will go up and mirror previous years.”
“Holi is meant to be a celebration of spring. That’s why it’s very colorful and you have a lot of fun,” Nair reflected.“The whole point is that you have fun and get to go crazy and that’s what we embodied at this event. We had fun and it was finally getting warmer, so it helped in the sense that we were all happy and there was good weather. For the community, I think what Holi really brings is an opportunity to blow some steam off from the busy life, to just have fun and get lost in the fact that you’re just playing and fighting.”
PEA’s observance of Holi was a fun opportunity for those who celebrate the holiday back home, for students wishing to commemorate spring, and even for some looking for a break from studying. Nomula concluded, “I just hope people had fun just being kids and enjoying a warm spring day.”
