“Hello… mic testing… This is to inform you that all the festivals are cancelled until further notice.” 

*One chaotic mess later!*

“NO, NOT THE FESTIVALS!!!!“

We often go by our lives like a boomerang – repeating the same action, over and over again. Ironically, boomerangs were invented as a form of hunting and entertainment. But our boomerang- like lives often get boring with the routine repetition. So we choose other forms of entertainment. Usually, what breaks that routine every once in a while is a festival or national holidays. 

When Kent Jones said, “There are as many festivals as there are mosquitoes after a rain.”, it wasn’t a hyperbole. We have so many festivals and holidays in the entire world that if we were to celebrate each of them, we wouldn’t get any work done. But we have seen some changes lately. We are not allowed to go out, or be in any crowded area. This beats the two main requirements of festivals – going out and being in a crowd. Therefore, festivals are cancelled at the moment keeping in consideration that welfare of human life unequivocally comes first. 

It’s safe to say that the world is obsessed with festivals – that is why we have so many of them. From religious festivals to music festivals, we have so many many of them!  And to be completely honest, festivals keep our life in check, it makes us smile, it reunites the loved ones and most of all, it instills hope in all of us. And in the current situation, hope is what we are looking for, isn’t it? 

What happens when all these beautiful, colorful and lively festivals get cancelled – our one easy escape from the boomerang of life?

Well, we can’t escape our house and now we can’t escape the boomerang either.  We are bored, we are fatigued and mostly we are a little sad. To add to that, hearing the news that we won’t get to celebrate these festivals can be frustrating. All in all, the boredom of our everyday life right now can affect our mental health. 

Festivals are like the light amidst the tunnel of life. In a situation where being hopeful and looking for the light is quite a task, it’s understandable that we all want a little festival in our lives. So, let’s create our own festivals.

Missing a music festival, get on zoom and start a music party with your friends or a listening party with your family! Missing the festival food? Time to start cooking! Festivals give us happiness and this is the time we create festivals to take our happiness back!

Pratiksha Rajopadhyaya