The Trans-Himalayan Holi - Folktrails

We believe "to live" is something we can do always. It's our choice how to paint our lives on the fresh canvas of the world. As itis said "to live is to free", and the moments that we'd experienced when we setour soul to dance over the clouds were believed the best and the mostunforgettable moments we humans had ever experienced.

Sangla, a small Himalayan hamlet situated at an altitude of around nine thousandfeet, Sangla is well known for its diverse traditional culture andtranquil landscapes. The whole valley is called Sangla valleyor Baspa valley( Baspa is the river flowing through this valley which adds moresparkles to the valley). The beauty of Sangla valleyis so serene that one can easily spend his day sitting back with a cup of chai(tea) and watch the tranquil landscapes and dancing clouds.But on the fest day like 'Holi' is nota sit back at all in this valley. People from the whole valley and the nearbyvillages gathered in Sangla to celebrate this festival of colours. Theenchanting music of drums and trumpet ( and also the localwine "Phasur") filled the souls with so much energy that thewhole Sangla was seen dancing on the beats of it. This twodays festival here ended with the "Dahan of Holika"(which was burnt as a symbolof victory of truth over sins), with people dressing traditionally and dancingin a huge circle around Holika.

The way these charmed kinnauri people celebrate this festival could not be seen in another part of the country. Andthe most beautiful thing that amazed us here was their respect fortheir culture and tradition, they've still preserved this thousand years olda tradition which can be seen purely on the festival like Holi.