As the spring enlivens us from the pallidness of winter, we take a look at how festively and colourfully the season is being welcomed by Bollywood A-listers.
Holi, which is a spring festival, has been a recurrent feature in Bollywood films of many genres, including the rom-com Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (2013) and heartrending drama film Baghban (2003).
Celebrating the symbolic victory of good over bad, according to Hindu religious tradition, Bollywood celebrities rejoiced at the Holi festivities this year on Monday, March 17.
While some celebs wished their fans generically, others had uplifting and socially conscious messages to share. We have compiled a list of what some of our favourite Bollywood A-listers had to say about Holi celebrations from masala.com and their social media pages:
Amitabh Bachchan
Holi is on Shweta’s (daughter) birthday and we shall be with her. So, I am not going to celebrate. There have been certain ill moments in the year and they still continue…When there is mourning in the family, festivals are put away, traditionally
Sonakshi Sinha
Happy Holi, everyone! Paint the town whatever colour you want, but be safe
Hrithik Roshan
Happy Holi, beautiful people. Remember, the best colours you can apply on someone are the colours of laughter and love!
Farah Khan Ali
Crazy men in the house! Hrithik Roshan and Zayed Khan.
Sonam Kapoor
Happy, happy Holi people!!!
Anupam Kher
Human blood is all of one colour. Happy Holi.
Farhan Akhtar
Holi for me is always family time.
Sophie Choudry
Happy Holi everyone! Have fun, dance, play safe but please don’t waste water and don’t take advantage of women.
Alia Bhatt
No Holi for me. I will be shooting for Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya.
Ayushmann Khurrana
I am not a big Holi fan. It’s a rowdy Holi in my part of the country. This time for Holi, I just want to chill with my family.
Arshad Warsi
Happy Holi, use dry colours and have a great day with family and friends.
Gul Panag
In solidarity with the residents of Chandigarh who are suffering from acute water shortage, I will not be playing Holi. Celebrate a vibrant, safe and environmentally-friendly Holi with natural colours (not chemicals) and ensure the safety of women and children.
Anushka Manchanda
Holi! Be safe. Don’t waste water. Use organic colour that doesn’t harm the environment or your skin and don’t put colour on animals.
Shabana Azmi
As is customary at my parental home in Janki Kutir, we’ll celebrate Holi with close friends and friends from theatre and cinema.
Vishal Dadlani
Holi is a fun festival to celebrate with friends and family, it’s not an excuse to molest women. Make sure you keep it that way.
Nargis Fakhri
I’ll be running around promoting Main Tera Hero. So, I don’t think I’ll get a chance to play Holi. Maybe, next year.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 18th, 2014.
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