It won't be long before we start calling Holi 'India's Tomatina'

As an Indian what irks me the most is when ancient Indian customs are painted with the brush of Western trends.

Take, for example, the recent Jallikattu protests: international media and well as mainstream news outlets at home equated it with Spanish bullfighting.

One headline read, "Thousands protest at Indian bullfighting ban".

Nothing could be further from the truth - as Jallikattu is not barbaric like Tauromachia, the Spanish bull-fighting sport.

Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara glamorised Spain and Tomatina for the Indian youth. Travelling to Europe with friends and taking off their shirts like Hrithik and pelting tomatoes at one another has made it to the bucket list of many urban youth.

It won't be long before goateed dudes begin calling Holi "India's Tomatina".

At La Tomatina, dubbed the "World's Biggest Food Fight", revellers pelt tonnes of squashed tomatoes in a weeklong celebration.

The festival includes music, parades, dancing, and fireworks - a carnival of sorts.

Unlike India's Holi, a several-thousand-year-old tradition, Tomatina is a 20th century development.

Back in 1945, a disgruntled man fell off a float during the annual parade in Spain. In a fit of rage, with nothing in hand, he picked up tomatoes from a nearby vegetable stall and began throwing them at everyone in sight. Over the years, more and more joined the festival - making it an annual event.

What the police once tried to stop, the local authorities now organise. More than 150 tonnes of tomatoes are sourced and delivered ahead of the fight. What was once a community event, now has a ticketing counter. The festival is kicked off by dropping a piece of ham from a greasy pole - with a cannon shot.

What started as a fight between groups of brawlers on street has now ballooned into a €3,00,000 (approximately Rs 2.10 crore) tourist event.

Many Latin American countries, including Columbia and Chile, have tried hosting similar festivals.

In 2011, as if we needed any more festivals, Indian event management companies tried to organise Tomatinas in Bangalore and Delhi. "In the name of Tomatina, permission should not be granted to waste tomatoes" was the reason cited by the state government whilst denying permission to the organisers.

In a country like ours, where millions are suffer from food shortage and malnutrition, why would the sponsors want to waste something perfectly edible? Yet, there is no dearth of fools in this country.

In 2016, La Tomatino was organised in Shillong: if you look at the logic behind Tomatina, you will find none. So, what is this obsession of emulating the West while ignoring our festivals?

When an Indian festival approaches, the din of the don'ts rises. Sample a few: "Don't waste water on Holi", "don't light firecrackers on Diwali", "don't fly kites on Makar Sakranti", "don't fast on Karwa Chauth", or "don't burn firewood on Lohri".

Holi is a major Hindu festival, celebrated for a cause larger than Tomatina. It tells us the story of the victory of good over evil. Bidding farewell to winter, it is the harbinger of spring.

If today's youth don't know about the heroic poem of Prahlad, Hiranyakashipu and Holika I wouldn't be surprised!

Bollywood has bastardised a holy festival. The youth associate Holi with Bhaang, dance and white robes. Most Indian movies from the '80s would have a song on Holi in the movie, where the hero - drunk on bhaang -throws colour at the heroine.

There's no mention of how young Prahlad stood up to his father, or how Vishnu saved him.

Thandai with Bhaang has become a must on Holi - and this myth is perpetuated with every new Bollywood song.

Coupled with many unpleasant events of molestation and the clichéd "Bura na maano, Holi hai", the festival makes women much too uncomfortable.

While we are busy destroying our festival and heritage, Westerners are trying to make them better. 

Popular music videos by bands like The Catalyst and Linkin Park show the lead singers enjoying the festival. Joe Hahn, one of the video directors, calls Holi the inspiration behind the video.

There are numerous other examples of different cultures wanting to associate themselves with Indian festivals. But we would rather engage in revelries that have no meaning for us.