Other colours of Holi

The festival of colours is just a day away and party plans have already been laid out. While Holi celebrations are synonymous with indulgence in sinful activities and smudging faces with colour, the city has a lot more to offer to revellers.

For those seeking a tranquil festival sans the early morning colour-throwing, Moonstone Hammock’s two-day Holi camp in Karjat is a perfect getaway. Additionally, these celebrations are entirely organic. Apart from a peaceful stay by the Shelu Sea, one gets a chance to go kayaking. And if staying on the ground wasn’t fun enough, they have floating camps too. “On arrival, people can go kayaking, followed by a live band performance and bonfire. The second day is when we start the actual Holi celebrations. There is a pool party, and the camp will be open for people to go all out,” says Rohit Dube, co-founder, Moonstone Hammock.

Furthermore, to get one and all involved, the organisers will be dividing those present into teams and playing games invented by them. “We have designed a few team building games which will only double the fun. We have one called ‘the pipe and marble’ where one has to balance marbles on pipes. The other has to do with the numbers placed on a stack,” smiles Rohit.

However, if you don’t wish to disrupt your fitness regime, Fitzup, a fitness community, is celebrating Holi uniquely in Madh Island. “We don’t want people to just eat, drink, dance and leave. There is more we wanted to bring to the festival,” says Neeraj Mishra, co-founder, Fitzup. The festival, which has been set up in the form of a village has a flea market, health trucks and live band performances. “There will be various gymnasiums participating in the festival. Our patrons can choose from Zumba, Bollywood workout sessions, medicine ball exercises, ladder and cone drill, barrier jumps, and much more,” says Neeraj.

And not wanting to spoil the actual fun of Holi, the organisers have included some unhealthy food, so to say. “We don’t want people to think of it just as a fitness place. And the idea is to celebrate it in a traditional way as well. There is jabeli, rabri, thandai and litti chokha without which celebration is incomplete,” he laughs. There are also special arrangements of transport after the party. 

Calling it an experience in itself, the organisers have also put up open movie screening of Andaz Apna Apna and Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar. “One is a comedy and the other an inspirational movie where they show the life struggle, challenges and exercises in the end,” he smiles.

If movies aren’t your cup of tea, history buffs can take a tour of the city with The Grand Mumbai Festival tour. Walking down the bylanes one can learn more about the tradition and play Holi with locals at the end of this one-hour tour.  “The starting point is Nariman Point. From there on we will cover Churchgate, Dhobi Ghat and end the tour back at  the same point,” says Pranav, the lead tour guide.

Participants will be taken to the incarnation temple of Lord Vishnu, the Bal Ganga water tank and will be acquainted with the culture of India. “Well, the tour is mainly for people who don’t have any knowledge about the celebrations of Holi. At the same time, it is open to all those who wish to visit the places of heritage in the city,” concludes Pranav.

The Mumbai Holi Festival tour is on March 2, the Fitzup event will take place on March 2, at Amandi Lawns, Madh Islandand Moonstone’s Holi event at Moonstone Hammock Camping Grounds, Karjat, on March 1 and 2