THUNDER BAY – Neither a global pandemic nor a day of heavy rainstorms could stop this year’s Festival of Colours. The tradition went ahead Sunday evening at the CLE to a small but enthusiastic crowd.
Hours of heavy rain that brought flash-flooding to some parts of the city cleared just in time for the event to start at 4 p.m.. Attendees took in traditional Indian music, dance, and food from their vehicles, while the main event – the throwing of colours – looked slightly different than usual.
COVID-19 restrictions dampened the usual riotous explosion of colour. Instead, participants celebrated the rite within their own social circles, or could take packages of dyed powder home with them.
Whatever the changes, friends Monika Dhanani and Amisha Patel were simply grateful for the chance mark the occasion.
“It’s really nice that we’re still able to celebrate it here, far away from our country,” said Dhanani.
The event, based on the ancient Hindu springtime festival of Holi, symbolizes the triumph of goodwill over darkness. For Patel, the chance to celebrate alongside friends was a welcome oasis of normalcy in a year that had brought more than its share of disruptions.
“Culturally, it’s more about celebrating being with friends and family – love and friendship,” she said.
“So it means a lot.”
Organizer Dr. Prashant Jani was thankful the event, along with the Festival of India held the day before, could go ahead in a challenging environment.
With world-class performers hailing from Toronto and Regina – in normal years, they can come from as far afield as India and the United States – the festival represented a wide range of India’s multifarious cultural and artistic traditions, as well as some more recent ones resulting from the North American diaspora.
The Festival of Colours was a perfect metaphor for that focus on diversity, he believed.
“Everything is fusion here,” he said .”We’re bringing the whole world together.”
