No Need to say “Sari” as Holi Celebrated for First Time in Two Years
Members of the Indian community in Phnom Penh were able to get out their gladrags for a night of fun, food and music as the Indian Association of Cambodia (IAC) celebrated the Holi festival for the first time in two years on the evening of March 26th.
Who are the Indian Association of Cambodia?
The Indian Association of Cambodia is an expatriate organisation serving the Indian diaspora in Cambodia. Its stated goal is the promotion of Indian culture within the Kingdom and prior to the C-Word descending on the us this primarily involved celebrating major Indian holidays such as Holi. And now as we embrace the “near-normal”, the IAC is ready to make up for lost time.
To read about lockdown in Cambodia click here.
What is Holi?
Holi is often described as the festival of spring, colours and love. It celebrates the eternal and divine love of Radha Krishna, as well as the victory of good over evil. Sentiments everyone can get behind right now (or bloody well better should!).
It is also famously the festival where coloured paint powder is liberally flung hither and thither. It soars into peoples faces, onto their clothes and into their lungs with an enthusiasm that builds exponentially in direct ratio to the flow of alcohol on hand. There is some controversy and health concern regarding the ingestion of Holi powder, but as a veteran enthusiast I can say that I have managed to survive much of the paint based carnage. A string of well-loved shirts of mine however? Not so much.
You can read more about Holi here.
Celebrating Holi in Phnom Penh
As someone who has lived on the Indian subcontinent I was excited about this event, particularly because of the food. Proceedings were started with a fine buffet of spicy fried chicken, popadoms and all manor of Indian dips. These were washed down with beer, vodka and a healthy supply of whisky at the open bar.
And then the celebrations hit high gear. Spared an overabundance of chit-chat and preamble, the games got underway almost immediately. The kids were up first, then an epicly strange version of couples musical chairs followed. Hilarity ensued as ladies kept sitting on the wrong men’s laps.
Once the games were finished it was time for dinner, with enough curries, nan and spices rolling out to satisfy every Indian food lovers palate.
The evening wound up with a DJ spinning Bollywood tunes. This sent almost the whole room, regardless of age or gender into a frenzy of bopping, much of it of the highly skilled variety.
As a group we managed to escape before the Holi Powder fights began in earnest, with the only sign of my participation being one lonesome red dot.
It truly is easy to forget how lucky we are to live in such a wonderful multi-cultural country like Cambodia, where organisations such as the IAC do such a sterling job of promoting all that is great about their community and culture.
You can check out their Facebook group and how to join here.
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 | https://www.cambodialifestyle.com/ |
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Author: Adam Reeves
An avid traveler and telecommunications expert, Adam has explored over 25 countries, immersing himself in their cultures to discover the best they offer. His passion for connecting people extends from his professional life to his adventures abroad.
