Celebrate the festival of colours
SHARVARI PATWA
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Holi and exams seem to go hand in hand. But the exams are no deterrent to having a good time…
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Photo: Sushil Kumar Verma
Non-stop play : Colours all the way.
Even with exams round the corner, children are geared up to play the colourful festival of Holi, with a little caution.
“I will be having exams during Holi, but I will still go out and play as I love to put colour on all my friends and we can play non-stop all day and forget about studying,” says 12-year-old Yash Patel.
While the idea of playing with colours and smearing each other’s faces with gulal does bring a naughty smile on to the face of these children, safety is still of prime importance.
Six-year-old Drishti Asknani, has a simple mantra for a safe Holi. “To not put in eyes, to not put in nose and to not put in mouth, that’s how I would like to play Holi,” she says.
Says 15-year-old Ashish Nair, “the best way to play Holi is never to mix water and colour,” this could go into your eyes and cause harm. “Or else just wear an astronaut suit,” he advises jokingly.
Chemicals and colours
For 11-year old Rithikaa Ravikumar Iyer, Holi means no colours and only water as she has been forbidden by her father to play with colours. “I am allergic to the colour powder and so I will be playing with only water,” she says.
For Ishika Sachdev (12) it is the water games during Holi which are more fun. You should not use any strong colours, which have chemicals as they harm the environment. Rather one should play with just gulal which is safer, she says.
While playing with colours which might be harmful for some, kids like 11-year-old Sneha Sashikumar are more selective. “You should not play with glitter and black colour as they are unsafe,” she says. “But you can play with the lighter colours which are specially made as they do not harm your skin.”
Some institutions such as the Pune-based social enterprise — Eco Exist make eco-friendly products marketing and selling chemical free natural Holi colours.
“We also visit schools and make presentations on the use of harmful colour products, and how even children themselves can make natural and safe colours at home by using vegetables such as beetroot and spinach,” says Ms Lolita Gupta, a volunteer with Eco Exist.
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