Religious and regional festivals makes up a key part of Indian culture, in a way they give India its vibrant soul. As an Indian living in Turkey, I miss those festivals a lot. Thankfully, the Friends of India Association (FOIA) has solved this issue.
On Sunday 15 April, the FOIA organised “Holi Khelenge” – a celebration of the Indian festival of colors. 170 Indians and Turkish nationals from Istanbul and neighboring areas gathered at the Beyoğlu Öğretmen Evi to enjoy the festivities. The event started with dancing to Bollywood tunes and playing with powdered colors. While the adults opened beers and danced to their heart’s content, little children chased each other with colors in hand trying to get as much color on their friends as possible.
As the event progressed traditional drinks such as Thandai and snacks such as Samosa and Pakora were served. While Thandai is a fragrant drink made by mixing milk with sugar and almonds; Samosa and Pakora are savory fried snacks served with special sauces called chutney. To add to the flavor of the celebration, some traditional Holi songs were played too.
For lunch a pleothra of delicious Indian dishes were served – including Vegetable Pilav (basmati rice prepared with mixed vegetables), Dal Makhani (whole black lentils prepared with butter and cream), Shahi Paneer (Indian cottage cheese prepared in a thick gravy made up of cream, tomatoes and spices), Butter Chicken (diced chicken marinated in yogurt prepared in a mildly spicy curry), Chicken Tikka (chicken marinated with yogurt and spices prepared by roasting) and Sooji Halwa (traditional desert made of semolina and dried fruits).
Before the event ended, I had a chance to meet with the Vice-president of FOIA Mr. Anıl Sethi. He said “FOIA’s aim is to connect Indians in Turkey and celebrate the festivals. Every year we celebrate Holi, Diwali and Navratra. All the events include Indian food which people look forward to. A lot of Turkish people and other foreigners attend these festivals as well.”
The Holi Festival momentarily made me feel that I was back in India. With my belly full of delicious food and face unrecognizable with color, I left the event feeling happy and with a few Bollywood songs stuck in my head.
