Gujiyaa, chaos and old clothes: Illustrators revisit their favourite Holi memories through art!

Indian illustrators Satya, Shubhajeet Dey, and Anymootion celebrate Holi by creating artworks inspired by their favourite memories associated with the festival.

Indian festivals are always a source of joy, radiating happiness through their vibrant colors. One festival that embodies this spirit is Holi. As children, we eagerly anticipated this festival when our parents let us be wild without question. Given its emphasis on color, it is no surprise that illustrators Satya, Shubhajeet Dey and Anymootion draw inspiration from Holi. These illustrators have embraced the beauty of the festivities with elements of the same making it into their art.

When asked how Holi as a festival inspires their work whether through colors, emotions, or storytelling, Shubhajeet recalls how it is anything but a giant coloring book where everyone forgets the rules and just goes crazy with colors! “That kind of wild, happy chaos is what I love bringing into my art. The festival is full of funny moments getting hit with surprise water balloons, turning into a human rainbow, or chasing friends with gulaal.” He resonates with the festival considering how it is all about emotions, friendships, and a little bit of mischief, something that is also how he would describe his cartoons!

Satya, who cherishes some of his favorite Holi memories celebrating with the kids in his neighborhood and at his hostel, decided to use his art and Reel series titled "Waqt ke Gulaam" to share glimpses of these childhood celebrations with his followers. For Anymootion, the focus is on including his friends. “I’ll always feature my gang of two friends in my Holi celebration memories cause they’ve always been there from the begining be it Holi or Diwali.”

Also Read: Creators on respecting boundaries and understanding consent during Holi

One thing that also accompanies the joy of celebrating festivals like this is the reflections on how these celebrations have changed over the years. Holi is no exception and Satya agrees as he highlights certain elements that have unknowingly become part of our celebrations today. “I think Holi has now become more about social media photos. In fact, all the festivals are becoming the same. But looking at the positive side, at least families are celebrating festivities for the sake of a photo and that’s bringing everyone together." He reminisces and appreciates the raw and genuine emotions that will always be associated with the celebrations from the past as compared to the ones now. "Today, Holi celebrations are mostly about DJ events and sophistication. I don’t think all these fancy celebrations can ever match the vibe of the Holi we used to play as 90s kids.” 

Anymootion recognized how this change was always inevitable since every generation will find newer ways to celebrate them, "just like our way of celebration must have differed from the previous generations. So every generation celebration has its own charm.” While they continue to bask in the joy of celebrating this festival, they decided to bring in their artistic magic and share a favourite part of their childhood Holi celebration through their illustrations. 

Here's how beautiful their illustrations turned out

Anymootion

Satya aka logokuhe

Shubhajeet Dey

What is your favourite Holi memory? Let us know in the comments below.