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A feast of spectacular colour as Hindus celebrate Holi

Millions in the Indian subcontinent celebrate the Hindu festival with fervour.

Holi Festival
Holi, the festival of colours, marks the arrival of spring. [Manish Swarup/AP Photo]
Published On 13 Mar 2017

Holi , the festival of colours, marks the beginning of spring in India.

One of the biggest Hindu festivals,  Holi holds a mythological importance – that of the triumph of good over evil. It is also associated with the eternal love of Lord Krishna and his consort Radha.

The festival of Holi brings together people of all classes and ages, who sing and dance, hand out sweets, and splash colours over friends and loved ones.

READ MORE: What this picture means to me – Widows celebrating Holi

 

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Coloured powder thrown over a college student during Holi celebrations in Agartala, India. [Jayanta Dey/Reuters]
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Rabindra Bharati University students perform Holi celebrations at the university campus in Kolkata, India. [Rupak De Chowdhuri/Reuters]
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Thousands of people from around the world come to the cities of Mathura and Vrindavan each year to see the grand celebrations in various temples. [Rajat Gupta/EPA]
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The Holi festivities last for two days in most places. A young woman has coloured powder thrown over her during celebrations in Kathmandu, Nepal. [Narendra Shrestha/EPA]
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Hindu devotees in Nandgaon village, in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. [Adnan Abidi/Reuters]
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Devotees in Ahmedabad, India, walk around a bonfire during a Holi ritual known as 'Holika Dahan'. [Amit Dave/Reuters]
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Women from the Pakistani Hindu community hold a dish filled with various colours to celebrate Holi at a temple in Lahore, Pakistan. [K.M. Chaudary/AP Photo]
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In the Indian village of Barsana, Mathura, devotees celebrate 'Lathmar'' Holi, which means 'beating with sticks''. The women of Barsana, the birthplace of Hindu God Krishna's beloved Radha, beat the men from Nandgaon, the hometown of Krishna, with wooden sticks in response to their attempts to throw colour over them. [Rajat Gupta/EPA]
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The festival of Holi is known for a spirit of energy, unity and love. [Rupak De Chowdhuri/Reuters]