India, March 17 -- As a child, and well into my teens, the festival I loved the most was Holi. For days before, my friends and I would plan for our buckets full of water-filled balloons, test and retest our pichkaris, and select our choice of colour for gulal. I could hardly wait for the morning of Holi, when the mock battles and ambushes would start, a riot of fun and laughter, that would last till late afternoon. Later, for many years, my wife and I and a friend hosted a Holi party on his farm, whose highlight was Dilli ka Khana. It was a vegetarian meal, with the best chaat from the old city, and bedwa aaloo.

Even then, I was surprised that many people, especially from the 'upper crust', kept away from Holi. They considered it too boi...