Holi: Nepal’s Festival of Colours

The freest and most colorful Nepalese festival Holi welcomes the spring with fraternity, festivity, and freshness. A festival in which men and women cross their social and cultural boundaries and become close to each other by binding themselves and enjoying the frenzy of colored water, music, and dance. Holi festival ignores the festival of brotherhood with a sense of belongingness and invites the whole world to ecstasy and time-eternal friendship.

History and Significance of Holi

Holi is a mythological Hindu festival and victory of good over evil. The two most popularly known Holi stories exist, and those are Prahlad and Holika. Prahlad was one of the disciples of Vishnu and brother to demon king Hiranyakashipu, who he wanted to be adore. He never committed his evil acts, when his fire-immortal aunt Holika attempted to burn him alive by casting him into the fire. He remained unharmed by all the piety and burned Holika in the fire. This is the triumph of good over evil, which has been kept in mind during the celebration of Holi.

It was not only a religious celebration but a welcome celebration because the spring season since there was prosperity and hope. It was harvesting season for the farmer and therefore the fertility of nature. During holi color time  one can witness the colored face of the fertility of nature.

Holi is being celebrated in all of Nepal but here, everywhere, hill and Terai have not been differentiated in celebrating. It has two days duration and hill towns like Pokhara and Kathmandu are celebrating the first day of Holi while celebration of the second day is underway in the Terai towns.

Holi in Hill Region

Amidst the busy city of Kathmandu, Basantapur Durbar Square is painted as well. Residents and international visitors observe the day get paint by color paint, traditional music, and dance festivals. Tourist destination Thamel is celebrate by the Holi festival in music and dance colors until midnight.

Pokhara, one-star lake, and Holi is celebrate differently. Phewa Lake Festival and lake festival, live show, and celebration are being celebrated. Adventure enthusiasts celebrate Holi paragliding, which is a memory to cherish for a lifetime.

Holi in Terai Region

Terai Holi is longer and more than in the hills. Nepalgunj, Janakpur, and Birgunj are centers of music, dance, and culture. Even water is wasted more in Terai where others get bucketfuls and water pistols. It is a ritual culture where traditional dance is danced.

Tourism and Holi

The festival of Holi in Nepal is the welcome of the peak tourists, and tourists from all over the world come to the destination.

The tourists organize the tour in such a way that they consider the festival so that they will be able to enjoy the festival in some or the other form. Even tourist locations like Basantapur, Thamel, and Lakeside Pokhara also celebrate Holi independently so that the tourists who are here may play and enjoy without any restrictions. As the villages are rural villages and traditional ones, even homestay is arrange under which the tourists have a chance to stay in a village and local fairs.

The best part of Holi is the unfiltered joy and unity it brings. Unlike other festivals with formal rituals, Holi is about breaking barriers—social, religious, and generational. The color play, the music and dance, and the carefree spirit make it unique.

Best Parts of Holi 

1. Playing with Colors

• They are shower with Gulal (color powder) and people spray painted colors of water among friends.
• Pichkaris (water guns) and balloons leaving a rainbow shiny red color on the roads are party starter items.
• Playing around, running around, playing colors literally party day.

2. Music, Dance & Celebrations

• Croaking of Bollywood Holi songs is on thudding loudspeakers and dhol (drums) is the beat.
• They sit sideways in thousands and paint one another, their faces radiating beaming smiles.
• Special events with DJs and live music attract crowds in cities.

3. Food & Beverages at Holi

• Gujiya (sweet dumpling), thandai (saffron flavored, saffron-cardamom-clove flavored, cardamom clove-flavored milkshake without or with shot of bhang), and the rest of all the other traditional old sweets cannot be the same without them.
• Spicy-hot street food like kachoris, samosas, jalebis come in on food stalls.

4. Smashing Barriers & Strengthening Ties

• Holi is a day when differences dissolve—strangers hug, old feuds are forgotten, and everyone is equal under a layer of color.
• Elders bless the younger generation, and communities come together.

5. Evening Gatherings

• Humans tidy up from the day’s gang war bash, doll up in new attire, and socialize with kin and friends.
• Sweet nights and snuggly conversation are the order of the day.

The best part of it is its spontaneity and inclusiveness—whether you’re a child, an elder, a local, or a tourist, you get swept up in its joy.

Traditional Food and Drinks

Even the cuisine is casual in Holi. Relatives make sweets and snacks to eat. The most common sweets are:

– Gujiya: sweet bread filled with sweet khoya (milk solids) in flaky form and fruits.

– Puri and Malpuwa: Fried sugar syrup-coated bread, fried pancake sugar syrup-coated.

– Sel-roti: Nepalese ring sweet rice bread.

– Bhang: Cannabis drink, which is taken in very small amounts as festive.

Safety Precautions

Holi is a festival and would thus have to do so with caution. The following would make the celebration of the festival safe:

• Wearing old clothes or colored clothes so stains would just not have been an issue.
• Anoint one’s body and hair so that colors can easily be wash out.
• Employ plant or herbal dyes so that one’s skin is not injure.
• Take lots of water and less of bhang or liquor.
• Dance in the open with close friends in such a way that one becomes secure.

Conclusion

Nepali Holi is neither a festival but, in fact, acceptance of society, culture, and life, and a rejection of life too. In the peaceful streets of Kathmandu, the peaceful lakes of Pokhara, or Terai town city cities, Holi gets loving people together and connect by love. Holi is a Nepali and a foreigner’s celebration beyond any ray of doubt objectionable and foreign. It’s one tradition that is an effective Nepali cultural heritage.

If you wish to witnessed this experience please do not hesitate to contact us at Happy Mountain Nepal Pvt Ltd