A plethora of colors danced in the air as adults and children of all ages and ethnicities blissfully disregarded social norms and celebrated spring at the Holi Festival of Colors at Norwalk’s Excelsior High School Saturday, March 7.
“The festival of colors gives support, people come together, the common purpose is to become more, to embrace the process of transformation, to appreciate each other and to love each other; think of each other as one family and get a great vision for the future, said Charu Das, the festival coordinator.
“Spring is a time of renewal and in fact, we should always be transforming ourselves, shedding the old, assuming the new, changing for the better, moving forward, and although [holi] is generally celebrated in spring it is a metaphor, which is applicable at any time of the year for any person,” he added.
Explosions of green, yellow, bright pink, and orange were unleashed after numerous countdowns.
Festival attendees walked freely rubbing scented colored cornstarch on each other with playful bliss in the most colorful way to conceal one’s identity.
The congregation of 10,000 attendees filled Excelsior High’s field with color-marred faces.
“There is no differentiation between caste or creed […] on this day everyone is of same color, so that is why we celebrate it, to say that everyone is equal in front of god,” said Aditya Sauauu, an Indian musician.
“Everyone says that but, we show them by putting colors in the face, you can’t recognize anyone here, they all look the same, Americans, Indians, Africans, everyone is the same […] that is the main moral of the festival,” added Sauauu.
Outside a colorful tent, his peers Kvauti, Sunny, and Uday, of Beach Beats, joined Aditya.
The two-month old band traveled all the way from India to play in the Unite States for the first time.
Unfortunately, due to late booking, management would not let them play, the band lamented.
Meanwhile, on the main stage, Peruvian native Lokah Bhakta & Yoganalikit brought the kind of entertainment that made it hard to stand still.
A fusion of reggaeton beats, chanting, rap, and yoga had bursts of colored powdered going off in the air and carefree people dancing in the hot sun.
Amongst the love and color, Beach Beats had its chance to emerge onstage thanks to Lokah Bhakta.
The roaring of the drums made the already compelling beats of Yoganilikit heard for miles around.
In the same radius, color stained festivalgoers were met with a crowd attempting to re-create the yoga positions led by a mantra music band.
“I’m enjoying! […] everybody has good vibes, it’s nice music and everyone is just happy- it’s nice to enjoy something like this, said Keri Malone of Long Beach.
Malone first heard of the festival from Millikan High School, who encouraged students to attend to learn and experience a different culture, earning them extra credit as well.
20 other stops of the Festival of Color will reach San Bernardino and Utah in the coming weeks.
As the festival winded down and the color explosions dwindled, Charu Das stood back stage and added, “Move forward. Be like the worm that is transforming itself into the butterfly. Associate with people who are going to challenge you and inspire you. Give up association with people that aren’t going where you are going. Consider before reading a book, or watching a movie, or take a course, or choose a friend, whether that is going to take you to a higher level.”
