How to celebrate Holi

• Customs differ in each household, but in Delhi, as a child I remember getting up in the morning, excited in anticipation of preparing the colored water and filling the balloons with it. My friends came over to our house, we would sit on the patio with buckets full of water and the color powder. My mom would prepare Idlis, yes idlis, since all my friends were Punjabi’s and Bengali’s and this is the food they wanted before joining in the street festivities.
• After our breakfast, armed with color water filled balloons we ran in to the street throwing balloons at each other. The festivities included adults and children taking to the streets, dancing, singing and throwing colored water balloons at each other or just the colored powder at each other. This was the one day when all social norms were forgotten – it was a joyous occasion. People would share sweet and savory preparations with everyone.
  These festivities would go on for at least four hours – going from one street to another and inviting all the neighbors to come out and celebrate. This festival is also a celebration of harvest and fertility of the land.  Even today it is celebrated throughout the world in a similar manner, but in a smaller scale.
• There are many-many more ways in which Holi is celebrated. Different countries, states, cities and villages celebrate this festival in their unique and innovative ways. It may not be possible to describe all of them in one place. What is noteworthy though is the fact that the spirit of Holi remains the same throughout. The festival generates the spirit of brotherhood and brings people close – and this is what matters the most.

How to make your own holi colors at home (food.ndtv.com)

• Herbal Gulal
  Holi is also the time for family bonding, and this is the perfect activity for all family members. Here is an easy recipe to make gulal by renowned beauty expert Suparna Trikha. Take 200gm arrowroot powder, 100gm haldi, 50gm marigold flowers, 20gm orange peel powder (finely powdered) and 20 drops essential oil of lemon or sandalwood. Put all the ingredients into a large plastic mixing bowl or tub and hand mix, rubbing together gently. You will see a beautiful yellow colored, safe and natural gulal being made.
• Herbal Watercolors
  For those of you who would like to play a wet Holi, buy Tesu flowers and soak about 100gm in a bucket of water overnight to get the beautiful saffron color. You can have the children fill balloons or their water cannons with this safe natural colored water.
• Shades of Pink
  For magenta or shades of pink, beetroot is an excellent agent. Boil a few pieces of beetroot in a cup of water to create dark magenta colored water. Or you can also keep beet pieces in the water and let it rest for a few hours for the color to develop. For dry powder, grind beetroot to make a paste and let it dry in the sun. Mix with besan or wheat flour and use. Hibiscus flower is another good option.
• Dry Powders with Food Colors
  Beauty expert Ishika Taneja says, “Dry colors on your mind? Take rice flour, add proportionate food color and mix it with two teaspoons of water to make a thick paste. Leave it to dry and then blend it in a grinder to use it as a powdered color.”
• Saffron Tinge
  It’s easy to make saffron, orange or yellow natural Holi colors. For powder, take besan and mix it with some haldi along with a little water. Then leave it in the sun to dry. For water colors, soak henna leaves in water overnight and use the water to play Holi the next day. You can also use henna paste.
• Go Green
  Yes, you are thinking right. You can use various green leafy vegetables to get the green color. Spinach is a popular choice and so is coriander leaves. Just make a paste and mix it in water and play!