Clouds of color erupted over the Arts Quad as students gathered for Cornell’s annual Holi celebration, marking the arrival of spring with music, food and the throwing of colored powder on Sunday afternoon.
The celebration, organized by the Hindu Student Council at Cornell, brought more than 400 students to take part in one of HSC’s largest cultural events of the year. After several years away from the Arts Quad, HSC event coordinator Trisha Paxena ’27 told The Sun that the return to this location makes the festival feel more “centrally located.”
For Esha Shah ’26, president of HSC, Cornell’s Holi celebration carries meaning as a cultural and campus tradition.
Holi “represents a couple of things,” Shah said. “It can mean the welcoming spring. It can mean celebrating love — the love between two of our deities, Radha and Krishna. And it can also celebrate the triumph of good over evil.”
During the event, organizers distributed white T-shirts and bags of pink, blue, green and yellow colored powder, which participants tossed into the air and onto one another. The celebration brought together students across all grades and friend groups, with many students posing for photos with their clothes and faces covered in color.
HSC also sold samosas and mango lassi, bringing traditional Indian snacks and refreshments to the celebration.
Saxena noted that at its core, the event is about connection, regardless of difference.
“When you are playing, there's no sense of your friends versus other people,” she said. “You are playing with whoever is around you, and that really builds a sense of unity on campus.”
Abhi Nisankararao ’27, a member of HSC, described the Holi celebration as a “mini India for the Indian diaspora,” and a space where students can “celebrate different cultures getting together.”
The festival is also included in the list of 161 things every Cornellian should do.
For some, Holi offers a joyful pause for students transitioning into one of the semester’s busiest stretches.
The timing of the event allows students to “have fun and get all the excitement out so we can study before finals and be a lot more focused,” Nisankararao said.
“To me, it also represents celebrating ... what we’ve achieved throughout the year and just letting loose and having fun with friends,” Shah told the Sun.
Shalini Ramakrishnan ’27 said that although Holi actually occurred on March 22, she is excited that Cornell’s celebration is held later in the semester so students can celebrate in warmer weather. For Ramakrishnan, who has grown up celebrating Holi at her house, the Cornell event is “reminiscent of home.”
“It's just like family here,” Ramankrishan said. Ramankrishan brought two of her friends, who asked to come and attend the celebration for the first time.
That curiosity, to Shah, is one of HSC’s central goals for the event.
“We love when people ask us questions,” Shah said. “We hope it brings communication and curiosity, so we can start talking interculturally and get to know each other.”
Behind the scenes, Holi requires months of planning, from reserving space and security permits to ordering food, speakers, tents and colored powder. Members of HSC gather before the event for “rang packing,” or portioning the colored powder into small bags for attendees.
“It's a lot of planning,” Shah said. “We have to start usually a couple of months in advance, and then it's pretty much on my mind every day.”
Still, Shah says the effort makes her both “hopeful” and “fulfilled” because of the joy and celebration it brings to campus. In future years, she hopes to include a dhol player, a traditional drummer often featured at Holi celebrations, to add to the festivities.
“Everything comes to life,” Saxena said. “It's euphoric in a way.”
