Happy Holi?

It is Holi today, it is a beautiful full moon night and the radio stations are playing Holi songs, but other than that there are no visible signs of Holi in Dubai. I don't mind that. For the last decade or so Holi and the days approaching it used to fill me with a dread that increased with every passing year. It started one year when some women in the ladies compartment of a local train I was in were hit by a balloon. The trains in Mumbai are so crowded that a balloon hurled at you unexpectedly can easily make one lose one's balance or grip on the handles. The consequences could be fatal. Surely this is something everyone understands? People used to target the ladies compartment and I often wondered what is so amusing about watching women try to duck the balloon when they are barely able to stand comfortably in an overcrowded train.
I was once hit by a balloon that was filled with violet coloured water. It was two days before Holi and I was in a rickshaw on my way to attend an interview. My clothes were stained and I could not bring myself to say Bura naa maano...Holi hain!

Over lunch today I was speaking to Shaheen, my colleague, about my experiences of the past. Shaheen, like me, is from Mumbai. She was once hit by balloons, thrown at her, from the top of a building. She had her two young sons with her then - one asleep on her shoulder and the other was holding her hand. Both kids below four years of age. It made me wonder why anyone would want to target someone like Shaheen to throw a balloon at. Not one to get pinned down or give up easily Shaheen went to confront the children who threw the balloon at her but they hid when they saw her approach. She then went to the local police station and made sure that the constable on duty gave them a sound warning. They weren't children really...most of them were teenagers.

Where has all the fun gone out of Holi? When I was growing up Holi was all about plenty of water, colour, laughter, food and great fun. They were innocent games that lacked the aggression that seems to be so dominant these days and when we threw a balloon at anyone, we didn't need to scurry for cover later. I'd rather have those memories of Holi than the more recent one's.

For me these days it is Bura maano...Holi Hain. It is a scary, painful and aggressive Holi :(