Residents celebrate at a Holi Milan in the city on Friday. Picture by Ashok Sinha

Patna, March 18: Over the past few days, the state capital has been soaking in the colours of Holi.

Social groups in Patna have been welcoming the festival of colours by organising Holi Milans, which are marked with revelry. Be it the eco-friendly Holi Milan of Tarumitra, or the Bihar Council of Women, Marwari Samaj or the Pensioners’ Society of Patna, each organisation hailed the festival in its true spirit.

Traditional Holi songs, accompanied with the dholak, proved to be the showstopper in almost every Holi Milan, where the iconic Rang barse weaved its magic on the revellers.

While a few of these gatherings saw a splurge of bright gulal, some like the Bihar Council of Women replaced the colours with humble flowers to celebrate the feeling of revelry. Veena Gupta, the secretary of Bihar Council of Women, said: “Since colours can be harmful or may lead to skin allergies, we decided to celebrate with flowers.” The Bihar Council of Women also organised games and gave the invitees an opportunity to showcase their talent and creativity, apart from dance and music performances.

The Pensioners’ Society of Patna also found their way to enjoy the pre-Holi spirit. The retirees, who have although celebrated several Holis in their life, made it a point not to miss out on the chance to celebrate the festival of colours.

Meera Sinha, an English teacher who retired a few years back, said: “It gives us great pleasure to meet our friends and former colleagues on such occasions to celebrate the spirit of togetherness.” These young-at-heart citizens surely know how to celebrate the festival in style.

When the feast of colours stirs the right mood can delicacies be far away from any celebration? Holi is no different and promises a treat for the foodies. From traditional puas, puran pohlis, gujiyas and nimkis to the popular dahi vadas and non-vegetarian preparations, the plates are full.

Residents, who stay out of the state regret missing out on the delectable dishes. “When I am unable to visit home on Holi, I really miss the homemade puas. As children, we used to wait for Holi to binge on our favourite dishes,” said Archit Kumar, who works in Bangalore.

The Holi Milans in the capital, in fact, offered a platter of special Holi dishes to whet the festive appetite.

If these Holi Milans are any indication, Sunday is set to be a special day for the residents, when the spirit of the festival will engulf one and all.

People will look away from the mundane flow of their days and will look to hail the festival with enthusiasm in the state, where it is marked as kurtaphar Holi, in sharp contrast to the more dangerous versions in Mathura and neighbouring areas. Known as lathmaar Holi, these celebrations see women wielding bamboo sticks at the men who bear it with a smile.

So forget the differences and herald a new beginning. Holi hain!