Holi 2016: Bura na maano, dry holi hai

Post the state government's diktat to celebrate dry Holi and avoid `criminal waste of water' until monsoons, Mumbaikars have made some changes in the way they celebrate as opposed to previous years. With water-cuts and no rain dances, here's how revellers are making the most of this festival...

TRIPS AND LUNCHES REPLACE RAIN DANCES
Housing societies across the city have pinned-up articles on their notice boards requesting residents to avoid using water. Those that have not are making verbal appeals to people. Thus, this year, rain dance parties are taking a backseat. And anyone found violating the instructions will have to pay fines for being unruly .

Though some societies will continue the celebrations by calling in water tankers, Hanumant Mhatre, who provides water tanker services in Vile Parle is an exception.He says, “I'm avoiding requests to provide water for societies on Holi. This is not only to avoid fines, but it's also incorrect to waste water on rain dances.“

To compensate, potluck lunches, short trips on the outskirts of the city are trending. Prof Sailaja Ravindranath, a resident of Mulund, says, “We have asked the kids not to play with water. Post their exams, we will take them for a picnic.“ The long weekend is also prompting many to plan a getaway .

LARGE-SCALE EVENTS, WATER PARKS MAKE CONSCIOUS EFFORTS, TOO

While many eco-friendly events were planned, few organisers made last minute changes. Bhavya Shah, who has organised one such event in the suburbs, is a case in point. “As soon as we read the reports, we didn't want to run the risk of playing with water and thus, cancelled it. It was great to see that there were no cancellations whatsoever; in fact, we sold many more passes post this. We've promoted our event like a music festival so people are not missing out on much,“ he says.

Similarly , an official of a water park in the city that continues to have the celebrations, says, “We have systems that recycle water after every 90 minutes, so, it is not like we're using additional amount of it.Since the festival falls on a long weekend, it is difficult for us to cancel the event. We've asked our guests to avoid using colours to ensure that the water is not contaminated and doesn't clog our system.“

GULAAL SALES SOAR, WATER GUNS TAKE A DIP

No number of fancy water guns or innovations with animated characters seem to entice shoppers this time.Shopkeepers, who sell these along with balloons are witnessing a 25-50 per cent fall in their sale. Soni Singh, owner of one such stall at D'Silva Road, Dadar, says, “The average sale ranges anywhere between ` 6,000 and ` 40,000, but due to water shortage, it has gone down almost 50 per cent. Thus, we've resorted to stocking more colours this time round.“ So will kids miss out on the pichkari fun? Bhupen Patel, father of four-year-old Tushhta Patel says, “Schools introduce kids to concepts like saving water through various activities. Just yester day , my daughter insisted that I use buckets and mugs instead of taking showers, or else `we won't ever be able to play Holi',“ he says.