I feel scared on Holi and the 10 days leading up to it. Why did the festival I loved as child growing up turn into my worst nightmare? Because hooligans use the “Bura na mano Holi hai” line to get away with sexual harassment. And because the system is not responsive enough to make women feel safer. 

I’ve had two bad experiences, including the time I was walking home from the tuition class where I teach. It was about a week before holi, people had already begun celebrating. Two men on a motorbike aimed a water balloon at my vagina. I felt violated and offended. My clothes were ruined and the prominent coloured, wet patch left me feeling so humiliated and scared. There were people around but no one came forward to help me. Where was the police patrol? These are signs of how harassment on Holi has been normalised. I ran home weeping. 

This happens to so many women in different cities across India. It is very easy to target women on Holi through water balloons by goons and anti-social elements. Because of them women don't feel safe outside during Holi festival. These anti-social elements make Holi a bad experience for the women. Everyone will remember the headlines from two years ago when urine-filled balloons were thrown at women outside Delhi University's Lady Sri Ram College for women. The humiliation and apathy we face is the same. I’ve complained twice on the police number 100. The response has not been reassuring at all. I never receive a follow-up call from them to update me about what happened to my attackers. 

Among other factors, poor policing is emboldening hooligans. My partner and I decided to fight this together. Sign our petition asking the police in all states where Holi is celebrated to step up patrolling and take strict action. I want people to say #BuraManoHarassmentHai instead of “Bura Na Mano Holi Hai”!

• I want to see police patrolling stepped up.
• I want to see hooligans being rounded up and dealt with as per law.
• I want to see the police launching a mass-awareness campaign to reassure women and warn harassers onground and online. Anything less than this will not be enough.

I want people to come forward and support this cause. I’ve seen petitions make a difference, put a dent on the system when thousands of people stand together. This is a safety issue and nobody is safe if we stay quiet. 

Sign and share widely until we get justice. 
#BuraManoHarassmentHai
#ConsentBeforeColours

(Red Dot Foundation supports this campaign. We believe that all festivals should be safe and inclusive. Holi as a festival is a festival of Colours and celebration, yet many people misuse it to sexually harass women and girls. This needs to stop.)