From Himansh Kohli to Vivaan Parashar and others, celebs want to burn negativity in Holika Dahan

From low-key Holi celebrations, to virtual Rangpanchami, the pandemic has changed the way we celebrate the festival of colours. As we gear up for Holika Dahan, celebs share with us the negativity and vices that they want to ‘burn’ and let go of today.

2020 was full of ups and downs and one of the things I want to leave behind and burn in Holika Dahan is moving through life on autopilot. I want to be more aware and conscious of the choices I make on a daily basis, like focusing on my mental health, not saying yes to every opportunity that comes my way, being ok with saying ‘no’ and also with the fact that we can’t always please everyone. The lockdown was a great reminder to focus on what is really important to me and to prioritise health and happiness.

I learnt to live life one day at a time. The pandemic has changed my perspective on life. I want to leave the habit of overthinking about everything in the Holika Dahan, so that I can live in the present. The pandemic made me realise that the past is just memories and the future is imagination, so for me, here and now will be the new way of life.

The one thing that I’ve learnt as a kid being is, “If you want to walk fast, walk alone. But if you want to walk far, walk together.” We as a community have to function together, which means we have to let go of our egos. The one thing that pandemic taught us is that we are in this together and you cannot win this alone. If we as humans have to come over the crisis, we have to rethink our lives and live more simply. Honestly, this has been my outlook towards life for a few years, where I believe in experiences more than things. So, that whole fact of owning things is left behind and I look forward to making more memories with my loved ones and connecting with people, by burning my ego.

While it's a festive time and we shouldn't even discuss negativity, I want to leave behind the pain and sorrows that I always kept hidden from the world. I don’t want to live under the burden of being a righteous person for the sake of others, so if someone wants to troll me for something, I'll let them do that. I won't spoil my day because of a nasty comment like earlier. This Holi, I’m also leaving behind a lot of self-doubts that I had in me for years. I want to kill that self-doubt that bogs me down. I just want to work hard without letting self-doubt impact me.

In the lockdown, we almost had nothing to do, no jobs, no income, no outings that taught us we don’t need much to live. The fear and insecurity of losing things that we think we own often pulls us back. Fighting my insecurity, eliminating them, and living without these fears and insecurities is what I am trying to achieve this Holi. Greed is also one thing that is so important to get rid of. The pandemic exposed us to uncertainties and made us realise that life is beyond money, so I am letting go of the desire for more and the quest to achieve more than what I already have. I want to burn all the negativity this Holi and stay positive

In this competitive industry, we often think about the things that we don't have and ponder over them. As artistes, we often think about the roles that didn't work out or the negative comments/trolling. This year I'm going to give that vice up and be grateful for the things that I have and move forward with more positive energy. For me now, it's very important to focus on the positive/good things that are happening for you as opposed to fussing over what we don’t have.