
Holi is one of the most joyous and vibrant of all festivals in the country. Also known as the 'festival of colours', it is celebrated by smearing colours on each other and devouring delectable sweets. This year, Holi was celebrated with full fervour in various cities and towns as people enthusiastically played with colours, balloons and water guns. (Express photo by Shashi Ghosh)
Youngsters enjoy the festival of colours at Shaniwar Wada in Pune. (Express photo by Ashish Kale)
Devotees celebrate Holi festival outside Shree Shyam Mandir Ghusuridham, worship place for lord Krishna at Jogendranath Mukherjee road, Howrah. (Express photo by Partha Paul)
People threw coloured water on each other as they celebrated Holi. (Express photo by Shashi Ghosh)
Holi celebrations at Swaminarayan Mandir, Kalupur. (Express photo by Nirmal Harindran)
Many people prefer celebrating the festival of Holi at places of worship. (Express photo by Partha Paul)
Holi celebration in Girgaum, Mumbai with Traditional Naman (folk song). (Express photo by Ganesh Shirsekar)
Children celebrating Holi in a society in Pune. (Express photo by Pavan Khengre)
People celebrating holi at old Delhi. (Express photo by Prem Nath Pandey)
Children enthusiastically took part in Holi celebrations. (Express photo by Praveen Khanna)
Holi celebrations in Kolkata witnessed people enacting the roles of Lord Krishna and Radha. (Express photo by Partha Paul)
Holika Dahan in progress at one of the housing societies in NIBM Annex, Pune on Thursday. (Express photo by Arul Horizon)
Holika Dahan bonfire at Palaj village, Gandhinagar. (Express photo by Nirmal Harindran)
Students, parents and teachers of Kumkum School in Maninagar, Ahmedabad, revelled in the spirit of Holi, as they celebrated the festival with zeal and colours. (Express photo by Nirmal Harindran)
Holi celebrations in New Delhi. (Express photo by Amit Mehra)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday extended his greetings to the nation on the festival of Holi. (Express Photo by Jithendra Modi)
Holi signifies the triumph of good over evil and it’s a day when people forgive and forget, and let go of the negative energies from their lives to start afresh. (Express photo by Nirmal Harindran)
People thronged the markets to purchase Holi colours, water guns and balloons. (Express photo by Amit Mehra)
Students of Sheth C N College of Fine Arts in Ahmedabad enthusiastically took part in the Holi celebrations inside the campus. (Express photo by Nirmal Harindran)
While colours are indispensable to any Holi celebration, you must exercise caution while playing with them as they contain heavy metals, broken pieces of glasses, chemicals and pesticides, leading to skin and eye injuries. (Express photo by Nirmal Harindran)
Before you step out to celebrate the festival, don't forget to ensure that your hair is well protected against all the damage caused by artificial colours. Wash and oil you hair before going out to play. (Express photo by Nirmal Harindran)
To take care of your skin and hair, use organic colours, and moisturise and oil your skin. (Express photo by Nirmal Harindran)
Women took part in Holika Dahan pooja ahead of Holi celebrations. (Express photo by Amit Mehra)
The festival of Holi is preceded by Holika Dahan when large bonfires are lit to symbolise the victory of good over evil. (Express photo by Nirmal Harindran)
People visit their loved ones and enjoy traditional sweet and food items like gujiyas, malpuas, dahi vadas and drink thandai on Holi. (Express photo by Amit Mehra)
Holi celebration at Students Center in Punjab University in Chandigarh. (Express photo by Jaipal Singh)
People celebrating Holi in Bengaluru, Karnataka. (Express photo by Jithendra M)
The cities and towns across the country turn red, blue and green as people play with coloured powder called Gulal. (Express photo by Nirmal Harindran)
Crowd celebrating holi with water and colours. (Express Photo by Jithendra M)
Children enjoying holi celebrations. (Express Photo by Jithendra M)