Holi(day &) night, non-silent night

As far as holidays go, Holi is rather special — since more than any other festival, by virtue of its name, it presumes it’s a holiday. But it’s also a tricky festival to enjoy during a pandemic, especially if you happen to be in one of the places where public gatherings are rightfully restricted, if not downright banned.
Perhaps, keeping this in mind, it was Holika that was celebrated with extra fervour last night. For one, unlike Holi, a bonfire is not fundamentally tactile, and can be observed and enjoyed from a ‘social’ distance.

Indeed, that would be the preferred mode of celebrating Holika. Also, it is celebrated to remember a ‘baddie’ — in this case, the demoness Holika, who, upon instructions from her brother Hiranyakashipu, tried to immolate her nephew, the Vishnu bhakt, Prahlad, in a fire.

It’s another story that Holika’s fire-protective shawl was blown off by Vishnu, roasting the lady, while keeping the Narayan fan Prahlad safe. Via Holika, many of us must have prayed for the good riddance of the bad rubbish that is Covid-19.

As for Holi itself, pichkaris can still operate — and operate well — from afar. And for the festival of colour, there’s always a Ram Gopal Varma or Karan Johar oldie you can fall back on to go all OTT. Here’s wishing all of you a Happy Holi — and a request to keep Holika-19 in mind this holiday.