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Indians drenched in colorful ashes celebrate Holi

Saturday, 11 March 2017 8:49 AM [ Last Update: Saturday, 11 March 2017 8:49 AM ]

Indian widows celebrate Holi or the "festival of colors" in Vrindavan on March 9, 2017. (AFP)

Hundreds of people in northern India have showered each other with colorful ashes to celebrate Holi festivities.

Participants in the Hindu-majority city of Vrindavan threw handfuls of human ash dyed in bright colors at each other, while chanting and prancing in a ceremonial fashion.

The festivities began with 2,000 widows dressed in white saris, embracing flowers and the cremated remains at a temple.

Then, they joined the crowd on the streets to scatter the clouds of color. The ritual is believed to be a way of paying tribute to the dead and their families.

Holi is sometimes associated with spiritual concepts as such, but the Color Festival is also celebrated all across India simply to mark the arrival of spring.

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