While the celebration of the Festival of Colors Holi is deeply rooted in Indian culture and tradition, it has gained popularity and recognition beyond Indias borders. The Korean community is no exception as was evident at the Korean Cultural Centre India (KCCI) here on March 20, where the vibrant hues of Indias festival of colors were embraced with much fervor and joy. Amidst the rhythmic beats of traditional Indian music and the jubilant laughter of participants, Korean students, and staff, alongside their Indian counterparts, came together to participate in the festivities. The air was filled with excitement as they applied vivid colors on each other, marking the onset of their first Holi experience for many Korean citizens. They danced to popular Holi songs such as Rang Barse and Balam Pichkari. To add a Korean twist to the celebrations, songs such as Gangnam Style by Psy and That That by artists Psy and Suga were also played and danced upon. The highlight of the event was the collective effort to delve deeper into Indian traditions through culinary exploration, with Gujiya, a quintessential Indian sweet associated with Holi festivities seemed to be everybodys choice. Guided by skilled chefs, Umesh Chaudhary and Kishan, participants had hands-on experience to prepare the Indian culinary heritage. A group of 25 students, all of them enrolled in the Korean language class that is taught at the KCCI, enthusiastically participated in the event. The joyous occasion also saw six Korean language lecturers, Korean and Indian staff members celebrate the festival of colours with a lot of fervor. Once everyone was soaked in the colours of Holi, the staff and the students of KCCI were divided into eight groups. The participants were first explained about the significance of the festival of Holi and were told about the traditional practice of making gujiya during the Holi festivities. This was to give them a chance to understand Indian culture better. After that, the in-house chefs did a live demonstration for the participants and explained the significance of each ingredient that goes into making the gujiya. The efforts had a sweet end with Korean and Indian staff enjoying the piping hot gujiyas. Hwang Il Yong, Director of the KCCI said, "Holi is a very vibrant festival and this can be seen by looking at the colourful faces of all the students and staff here at the Korean Cultural Centre India today. Gujiya is a very essential element of the festivities of Holi and therefore the Korean Cultural Centre India decided to prepare the Indian sweet. By celebrating Holi, we want to show our deep respect to India and learn about Indian culture, Hwang added. Reflecting on her experience, Kim Bo Mi, PR Head KCCI shared, It was my first time celebrating Holi in India. I learnt how to make a traditional dessert called Gujia which showed me how warm and sweet Indian culture is. Indian students taught me how to make Gujiya and cheered me on. We also had fun throwing colored powders at each other, feeling like we were all friends from both countries, she said.

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