Delhi in the springtime means Holi. And more than anything else, the Festival of Colours gives Delhiites a chance to let their hair down and give a rest to most social inhibitions and restrictions. The neighbours who politely greet each other from afar each day have a reason to share unforgettable moments of hilarity and bonding.

But the face of Holi has changed over the years. Where earlier Holi represented a celebration of the winter harvest and the welcoming of summer, now it means a day spent with friends and family in unrivalled abandon. Traditionally, Delhiites would visit their family, friends and neighbours, respectfully putting a “tika” of colour on elders and eating “gujiyas” and other “mithais.” This would be followed by the youngsters really letting go, applying coloured powder or “gulal” on every accessible body part and spraying each other with coloured water.

Today, Holi is an occasion that needs preparation. To avoid all the harmful chemicals that were put to make “gulal,” enterprising companies have come up with herbal colours that are allegedly perfectly safe for our skin. These are available in the larger shops and cost more than regular “gulal.” Then, of course, China has jumped into the fray with “pichkaris.” Gone are the old metal or plastic spray guns. Now we have multicoloured and exotically designed implements that I first mistook for unusual children’s toys till the shopkeeper enlightened me! Who can stop progress?

And if you are in Delhi and are someone to be taken note of, you need to either host or be invited to a Holi gathering at a farmhouse. And you need to have white clothes, ala Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini in Baghban. Then you have to be dunked into the coloured water of the swimming pool to really complete the experience. And to cool things off, cold beer followed by biryani for lunch must be a tradition by now. But again this needs forethought because the Delhi government, in order to keep citizens safe, requires all liquor shops to be closed not only on Holi but also on the day before the festival.

So whether you are celebrating the harvest or the defeat of the evil Holika or are just emulating Lord Krishna with all his Gopis, Holi is a reason to let go of all inhibitions and really have fun the Indian way.