Bhaang, gujiya, and thandai: What’s Holi without food, drinks, and a little madness?

The first day of Holi, called Holika Dahan, celebrates the triumph of good over evil. The following day — called Rangwali Holi, Phagwah or Badi Holi — is when people play with gulal or aabir and coloured water.

Holi is also one of the few occasions when consuming cannabis, in various forms, is considered de rigueur. Bhaang is one such drink. This ancient cannabis preparation––made by drying, grinding, and soaking cannabis leaves into a thick paste––is blended into lassi, thandai, and even pakoras. While India’s Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 bans the production and sale of cannabis resin and flowers, according to Vice, it does not explicitly prohibit the leaves, creating a loophole that keeps bhaang an integral part of the festival.

According to Hindu mythology, the cannabis plant originated during the churning of the ocean (samudra manthan). Along with divine nectar, a deadly poison—halāhala—emerged, which Lord Shiva consumed to save the world. It is said that bhaang served as his antidote, its medicinal properties waking him on the day of Holi, earning it the title of a “gift from the gods”––not that anyone is looking for justification to add bhaang to lassi, pakoras and thandai.

According to Hindu mythology, the cannabis plant originated during the churning of the ocean (samudra manthan) (Image generated by AI)

Shiva’s association with bhaang is legendary, but he wasn’t the only historical figure fond of it. Even Mughal emperor Akbar, known for abstaining from wine, was a devoted bhaang enthusiast. Bhaang has even evolved with the times. One luxury bar now serves a Bhaang Highball—a cocktail of Japanese whisky, tangerine, smoked oak, and fenugreek tincture, served in a bhaang salt-rimmed glass. Shiva would be pleased.

If you’re not bhaang-friendly, Holi still has plenty to offer, starting with sweets. The RWA WhatsApp group is buzzing with orders for gujiya by the kilogram. A classic Holi sweet, this ghee-soaked pastry, stuffed with sweetened khoya (milk solids), dry fruits, and desiccated coconut, and then deep-fried and dusted with powdered sugar, is a festival staple. You’ll get variations of gujiya across India, with different fillings. In Bihar it is called pedakiya, ghughra in Gujarat, karanji in Maharashtra, karjikayi in Tamil Nadu and somas in Karnataka.

Another Holi favourite is puran poli—a soft, thin paratha stuffed with sweetened chana dal, jaggery, and cardamom. An oddity which few know of as a Holi staple is kathal ki sabzi in Bihar and Jharkhand, where jackfruit grows aplenty.

But what is Holi without a cold glass of thandai? With its mix of almonds, poppy seeds, melon seeds, whole fennel, black peppercorns, green cardamoms, saffron, and finished off with a sprinkling of dried rose petals or gulkan, thandai is a cold glass of liquid dessert to make you feel virtuous. After all, Holi hai!