Ajay Verma/ReutersStudents with their faces smeared in colored powder dance as they celebrate the Hindu festival of Holi, heralding Spring, at a university campus in Chandigarh, India on March 1, 2018.
Riotous, vibrant color envelopes India when Hindus celebrate the end of winter and the arrival of spring with the annual festival of Holi. Also known as the festival of colors, it is a time to let go of certain social norms by wearing all-white clothes to dance and douse friends, family and strangers in colored powders or water of deep hues of magenta, blue, green, yellow or orange. Holi has its roots in stories from Indian mythology. Though the official date this year is March 2, different parts of the country celebrate the day before then or over several days.
Bikas Das/APA color smoke candle fill the air as a procession of the Hindi god lord Krishna's chariot moves through a street during Holi in Kolkata, India on Feb. 28, 2018. Francis Mascarenhas/ReutersThe tradition of throwing colored powder and water is believed to originate from the mythological love story of Radha and Krishna. A woman smeared with colored powder shakes her head during Holi celebrations in Mumbai, India on March 2, 2018. Rajat Gupta/EPA-EFE/REX/ShutterstockHindu men from the villages of Nandgaon and Barsana celebrate the Lathmar Holi festival at the Radha Rani temple in Barsana village, Mathura, India, Feb. 24, 2018. Adnan Abidi/ReutersWidows covered in colors dance during Holi celebrations in the town of Vrindavan in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, India, Feb. 27, 2018. Rupak De Chowdhuri/ReutersColored water is poured on a boy during Holi celebrations in Kolkata, India on March 2, 2018. AFP/Getty ImagesIndian and foreign tourists take part in the "kapda phaar" or cloth tearing during Holi celebrations in Pushkar, in the Indian state of Rajasthan on March 2, 2018.AFP/Getty ImagesTribal students from the Kalinga Institute of Social Science (KISS), dressed as Lord Krishna and Radha, face a rain of petals during Holi celebrations in the city of Bhubaneswar in Odisha, India on March 1, 2018. Adnan Abidi/ReutersHindu devotees take part in Holi festivities inside a temple in Nandgaon village, in Uttar Pradesh, India on Feb. 25, 2018. " onerror="this.src='http://a.abcnews.com/images/International/india-holi-08-gty-rc-180302_3x2_992.jpg'" />AFP/Getty ImagesStudents smear colored powder on each other for Holi in Kolkata, India on Feb. 26, 2018.
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