Holi wishes as bright as the courtyard at noon.

When is Holi 2027?

Holi falls on the full moon of the month of Phalguna, which puts it in March, and occasionally late February. In 2027 the day of colours is Monday 22 March, and Holika Dahan, the bonfire, is the evening before. Because it follows the lunar calendar, local calendars sometimes differ by a day, so check yours.

What is Holi?

Holi is the festival of colours and the arrival of spring. The best-known story behind it is Prahlad's: a devotee of Vishnu whose aunt Holika tried to burn him in a fire, only to be burned herself while he walked out unharmed. That's why the night before Holi is Holika Dahan, when communities light a bonfire to mark good winning over evil.

The colours come from Krishna and Radha, and Holi is celebrated most famously in the Braj region around Mathura and Vrindavan, where the festivities run for days. In Barsana, Lathmar Holi sees women playfully chase men away with sticks, a tradition tied to Krishna's teasing of Radha's village.

How Holi is celebrated

On the morning of Holi, people pour into streets, courtyards and terraces with gulal, dry powder colours, and pichkaris, water guns, and nobody stays clean for long. There's music, dancing and a lot of food: gujiya, the sweet fried dumpling, malpua, dahi bhalla and thandai, a spiced milk drink. "Bura na mano, Holi hai", don't mind, it's Holi, is the phrase that excuses every surprise attack with colour. By afternoon the colours are washed off, and the evening is for visiting family and friends.

What do you write in a Holi message?

Something playful and something warm. The playful part can be the colours, the balloons, the clothes you'll never wear again or the gujiya you won't share. The warm part is a wish for a bright year, or a line about letting old arguments go, which is very much in the spirit of the day. Send it early in the morning, before everyone's phones are hidden in plastic bags.

For elders and formal groups, the Hindi "होली की हार्दिक शुभकामनाएँ" with a blessing is always right. For friends, a joke about who's getting coloured first. For a partner, a line about being the first colour you notice.

Holika Dahan wishes

The evening before Holi, families gather around the bonfire, walk around it and pray. A Holika Dahan message is quieter than a Holi one: a wish that the fire burns away worries and that goodness wins. It's a good message for elders and anyone you won't see on the day itself.

A safe and gentle Holi

Holi is best when everyone's enjoying it. That means asking before you colour someone who isn't playing, especially strangers, and never forcing colour or water on anyone. Natural or herbal colours are kinder to skin and eyes than cheap chemical ones, oiling skin and hair beforehand helps the colour wash off, and pets and small children need protecting from powder and water balloons. A "safe Holi" message that says so is a thoughtful one to send to a family or society group.

Holi wishes for colleagues

Keep them short, bright and sent a day early, before people log off for the holiday. A wish for joy and success is enough; the jokes about coming back to work still green are fine for your own team. Offices with colleagues from outside north India appreciate a line that explains the day as well as wishing it.

Holi far from home

Holi is celebrated by Indian communities around the world, often at a weekend event in a park or a temple. If you're far from family, ask for photos, the messier the better, and send yours back. A video call just before the colours start lets you be part of the morning, even from another time zone.

When to send a Holi message

Early on the morning of Holi, before the colours start and phones go into plastic bags, or the evening before, alongside a Holika Dahan wish. For the people you're playing with, the message can wait: the photos you send that afternoon are the real greeting. For relatives and elders you'll visit in the evening, a short wish in the morning and a visit later is the classic combination.

Holi and letting things go

Holi has long been a day for mending things: old arguments are meant to be forgotten as everyone ends up the same colour. That makes it a good excuse to message someone you've fallen out with. "Is Holi purane gile-shikwe bhool jao", forget old complaints this Holi, is a traditional line for exactly that, and a playful wish is often easier to send than a formal apology. If it needs more than that, the sorry messages page can help.

Holi wishes in Hindi and Hinglish

"होली की हार्दिक शुभकामनाएँ" is the standard wish, and "होली मुबारक" the everyday one. Rhyming Hindi couplets are a Holi tradition in themselves, like "रंगों की बौछार, अपनों का प्यार, मुबारक हो होली का त्योहार". In Hinglish, "Bura na mano, Holi hai!" says it all, and friends will know exactly what's coming.