Holi falls on the full moon of Phalguna, the last month of the Telugu year, as winter gives way to heat. In the Telugu states the full moon is Kamuni Punnami, the night of Kama Dahanam, the burning of Kama; the colours follow. It is played hardest in Hyderabad and across Telangana, and more quietly in coastal Andhra.
The story
The Telugu story is Kama's. The gods needed Shiva to marry, and sent Kama, the god of desire, to break his meditation. Kama loosed his arrow of flowers; Shiva opened his third eye and burned him to ash. At the plea of Kama's wife Rati he was restored, but without a body. The bonfire on the eve of Holi is that burning.
Further north the fire is Holika's: the demoness who carried her nephew Prahlada into the flames, sure of a boon that protected her, and burned while the boy who trusted Vishnu walked out.
How it is kept
- Kama DahanamOn the evening before, a bonfire is lit at the street corner, often with an effigy of Kama.
- ColoursFrom morning, friends and neighbours smear each other with gulal and drench each other with coloured water. The old colour was made from moduga (palash) flowers, which bloom in this season.
- JajiriIn Telangana villages, in the days before, boys go from door to door with sticks, singing jajiri songs and collecting gifts.
- Banjara HoliThe Lambadi communities of Telangana keep Holi over several days with songs and dances of their own.
- AfterwardsA bath, clean clothes, and sweets shared with the people one has just coloured.
Why this date
In this calendar Holi is the day on which the full-moon tithi of Phalguna is in force at sunrise, which is the day the colours are played. Kama Dahanam is the evening before.
Holi in other years
| Year | Date | Day |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Tuesday | |
| 2027 | Monday | |
| 2028 | Saturday | |
| 2029 | Wednesday | |
| 2030 | Tuesday | |
| 2031 | Sunday |
More Telugu festivals
6 MarchMaha Sivaratriమహా శివరాత్రి
7 AprilUgadiఉగాది
15 AprilSri Rama Navamiశ్రీరామ నవమి
13 FebruaryRatha Saptamiరథ సప్తమి
16 JanuaryKanumaకనుమ
8 MayAkshaya Tritiyaఅక్షయ తృతీయ
Where to see Holi
In the Telugu states
- Begum Bazaar, HyderabadTelanganaThe old trading quarter, where the Marwari and Gujarati communities of the city play the loudest Holi in the Telugu states.
- The Banjara thandas of TelanganaTelanganaLambadi settlements keep Holi over several days with dancing in a ring.
Across India
- BarsanaUttar PradeshLathmar Holi, a week early: the women of Radha's village beat back the men of Krishna's with sticks.
- Banke Bihari Temple, VrindavanUttar PradeshKrishna's country keeps Holi for more than a week, with flowers and colour thrown inside the temple.
- SantiniketanWest BengalBasanta Utsav, the spring festival Rabindranath Tagore began, in yellow, with song and dance.
- Anandpur SahibPunjabSikhs keep Hola Mohalla on the following day, with displays of horsemanship and arms.