Mathura Holi Procession 2015: When colors attack!

Each other Mathura and the villages around celebrate Holi unlike any other region in the country and the days following up to the big day are no less significant. Just a day before Holi, Vrindavan truly comes alive with colors at the Banke Bihari Temple. As the festivities in Vrindavan get over around 1.30pm, the city of Mathura starts to get more and more alive with colors - through a Holi procession!

Mathura Holi celebrations procession 2015 colors gulal red yellow kids children
Small children ready with their ammunition!

About ten vehicles especially decorated for Holi participate in this procession which starts at the Vishram Ghat and continues beyond Holi Gate. The event roughly starts at about 3pm and goes on till sunset.

The vehicles not just have people in them, they are also like a moving story. Some have Radha-Krishna sitting on them, while others have old men singing songs of God. There is a decked-up camel right at the beginning and thankfully beyond that there are no animals.

Mathura Holi celebrations procession 2015 colors gulal red yellow sardar dancing
Sardarji was quite a dancer! :)
Mathura Holi celebrations procession 2015 colors gulal red yellow men walking
Older men celebrate with more music and less noise :)
Mathura Holi celebrations procession 2015 colors gulal red yellow men posing
Ah! The flag of India :)
Mathura Holi celebrations procession 2015 colors gulal red yellow kids children playing
Kids throwing colors from the vehicle

The procession is music and color filled with people spraying them with water and colors from the buildings all around as well. Almost everyone participates in full zest, including some very energetic young kids! Women are generally missing from the Holi in the city and this event is no exception. The crowd does get rowdy sometimes and I guess that the reason for the absence of many local women.

My DSLR battery died out right when this started, so most pictures shared here are from my ever-dependable iPhone 6 :)

Here is a photo-story from the event :)

Mathura Holi celebrations procession 2015 colors gulal red yellow legs chappals
Dirty legs :)
Mathura Holi celebrations procession 2015 colors gulal red yellow old woman watching
An old woman looking at the procession from her window
Mathura Holi celebrations procession 2015 colors gulal red yellow krishna radha
Radha and Krishna on a chariot
Mathura Holi celebrations procession 2015 colors gulal red yellow men greeting
Men greeting each other
Mathura Holi celebrations procession 2015 colors gulal red yellow kids children
Kids ready to attack!
Mathura Holi celebrations procession 2015 colors gulal red yellow kids children
Flying colors!
Mathura Holi celebrations procession 2015 colors gulal red yellow children
Not me!
Mathura Holi celebrations procession 2015 colors gulal red yellow bullock cart from top
A bullock cart from top

Comments

  1. Wonderful, very colourful. I like that photos.

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  2. Hari Om
    ...and in the end, all one colour... &*> YAM xx

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  3. Nice!! loving u pics!

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  4. Thank you...it was an attack of colors there :)

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  5. Great Photography Sir :) I wondered no one throw color on you :P

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  6. By which time does the procession end and from where does it start and ends where?

    ReplyDelete

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