Rachna Gilmore, author and illustrator,
Mina's Spring of Colors.
Fitzhenry and Whiteside, 2000.

Imagine celebrating an Indian festival in a foreign land. Not with other Indians, but with your friends and neighbors. Imagine that they are not the audience, politely watching from a distance because it seems mystical or exotic – but that they participate with anticipation, enthusiasm and gusto.

This is the central theme of this delightful book for children in the 9-12 age range. The festival that is celebrated is Holi - the spring festival of color. The protagonist is a young Indian-Canadian girl named Mina whose world revolves around her classmates, her parents and her sometimes embarrassing grandfather Nanaji.

On one level the book is a blueprint for throwing a Holi party of your own. The invitation cards have information on what the party symbolizes:

During Holi people shower each other with colored powders called "gulal" either dry or mixed with water. It’s a wonderful free-for-all, a rejoicing for the winter harvest and the arrival of spring. The throwing of the colored powders symbolizes the letting go of old quarrels and animosities. As well, the colors represent the personality taking on a different hue: the changing of old hatreds to positive, brighter feelings.

The cards also explain what to bring (wear old clothes, bring colored powders and squirt guns) and what to expect (people throwing colored powders and squirting colored water at each other).

It is a time to bring together all people, old and young, rich and poor. No one is exempt- join us for the fun – if you dare!

People of all ages and persuasions take up the challenge. School mates and office colleagues all come with their families, as do neighbors and friends.

On another level, it is Mina’s poignant coming to terms with her "embarrassing" grandfather. He keeps telling her she is wasting her time when she watches TV, wants her to play math "games" with him and generally insists that she be "productive". Worse, his Indian accent becomes the butt of jokes by Ashley, the popular girl in her class. All in all, it is not an environment conducive to developing a warm relationship.

At the Holi party, Mina decides to exact revenge on Ashley. In the nick of time, she is prevented from doing so by Nanaji. He does this knowing that Ashley makes fun of how he talks and also knowing that this upsets Mina. He tells her,

"You know, it’s a funny thing, anger. I’ve noticed that the things that make me most angry about others are the things that I don’t like inside me".

And suddenly Mina realizes that her anger was not just about Ashley, but about herself too. She was upset at Ashley precisely because she was embarrassed of Nanaji. And then she understands the meaning of his oft-repeated words "be aware" –

it’s a way to see and know, not just stumble along blindly

I think all of us, young and old like, need to occasionally remind ourselves of this simple idea.

By the end of the party everyone is covered in all the bright colors of Holi - reds and greens, purples and yellows. They all look alike - artificial divisions of color and race erased. And they munch on a cornucopia of world cuisine:

... perras and samosas, Ms. Lee’s eggrolls, some fudge, the Lowell’s cookies, Ms Dutta’s pakoras and a butter pecan tart.

Nandini Pandya
February 28, 2003

Nandini Pandya is a mother of two and a resident of the US for almost twenty years. Originally she is from Mumbai.

http://www.desijournal.com/book.asp?articleid=55