It is unfortunate that the way is which we celebrate Holi has degenerated to such an extent that most Kathmanduites wish that this time of the year would never come, so unlike the typical Nepali behavior of looking forward to festivals such as Dashain and Tihar. Essentially, it’s nothing but the idea of entertainment that has terribly gone wrong. Deriving pleasure at the cost of somebody else’s misery qualifies as sadism, not entertainment as some would like to believe.
While the spirit and the colors of the spring festival provide respite from the drudgery of everyday life, it would be nicer if people inject a certain degree of decency into the celebrations. Forcibly smearing soot on unsuspecting people and ‘attacking’ them with balloons or plastic bags filled with dirty water, often leading to skin diseases, steals the essence from the otherwise lovely festival.
Rather than writing laws, the effective way of dealing with such unruly behavior is to run sustained campaigns with the aim of inculcating civic sense among the people. If young boys, who are mostly at the forefront of such activities, can be made to internalize why such behavior is uncalled for, we should eventually be able to do away with it. It would indeed be so wonderful if we are able to celebrate and preserve Holi — one of the many festivals that showcase our rich and colorful heritage — it its unadulterated form.
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