Munshi Premchand arrived in Delhi on March 7, 1936. The next day was Holi. The whole city was immersed in the colors and festivities of Holi. Back then, Delhi was much smaller than it is today. On that Holi, Munshi Premchand was staying at the house of the renowned Hindi writer Jainendra Kumar Jain in Daryaganj. The purpose of his visit to Delhi was to attend the formation of the 'Hindustani Sabha.' This was a common platform for Hindi and Urdu writers. He was invited to participate in this program by Jainendra Ji. Premchand came to Delhi immediately after participating in the Hindi Sahitya Sammelan in Purnia. Amrit Rai wrote in 'Kalam Ke Sipahi' - "It must have been around 9:30 in the morning on the day of Holi. At that time, a group of Holi celebrators suddenly entered Jainendra Ji's house, and that group honored Munshi Premchand with streams of dozens of pichkaris (water guns) and gulal (colored powder) in such a way that Premchand was shocked for a moment. Within moments, he was drenched from head to toe in water of many colors. Startled, he got up, composed himself, and said, 'Oh brother Jainendra, I am a guest here!'" On the evening of Munshi Premchand's Holi, i.e. March 8, 1936, he reached the Jamia Millia Islamia campus in Karol Bagh. He must have gone from Daryaganj to Karol Bagh by Tonga. Back then, the Jamia campus used to be in Karol Bagh. When Premchand arrived in the evening to participate in the Hindustani Sabha program, there were colors of Holi on his face. Actually, Munshi Premchand used to visit Delhi frequently. His Delhi trip in April 1935 was very special. He had stopped in Delhi on his way back to Banaras from Bombay (now Mumbai). He could not connect with the atmosphere of the film city. He was not enjoying himself there. That's why he had said goodbye to it. When Premchand came to Delhi, his host here was Aqil Sahib, the editor of 'Risala Jamia' magazine. A queue of people who wanted to meet Premchand formed at Jamia. Everyone wanted to meet him. By then, he had written 'Sevasadan' (1918), 'Rangbhoomi' (1925), 'Kayakalp' (1926), 'Nirmala' (1927), 'Gaban' (1931), 'Karmabhoomi' (1932) and many stories and novels. Anyway, in a meeting at the Jamia campus, Aqil Sahib requested Premchand to write a story while staying here. These things were happening during the day. Premchand did not disappoint his friend. He wrote his immortal story 'Kafan' that very night.
Meanewhile, the colors of Holi have spread in the atmosphere of Delhi. The fragrance of gulal and gujiya can be felt everywhere. Everyone, common and special, is in the Holi mood. Although many Holi Milan events have been held in the capital, and will be held this time as well. But some events have been memorable. As an example, the Holi Milan held at the former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's official residence was of special importance. In it, Indira Gandhi used to serve Gujiya to the guests. The entire Holi Milan used to be in a very decent style. At one time, Harivansh Rai Bachchan and Teji Bachchan used to look after the entire event. On Holi, the gates of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's official residence, 1, Safdarjung Road, also used to open for everyone. Indira Gandhi used to serve delicious sweets to the guests. But after 1980, Indira Ji's Holi Milan was not as grand as before due to security reasons. By then, terrorism had established its roots in Punjab. The arrangements for Indira Ji's Holi Milan were looked after by her secretary R.K. Dhawan. Before Dhawan Sahib, Indira Ji's Holi Milan used to be organized under the supervision of Harivansh Rai Bachchan and Teji Bachchan.
Atal Bihari Vajpayee's Holi Milan celebrations at 111 South Avenue, 6 Raisina Road, and then at the Prime Minister's residence at Lok Kalyan Marg, Atal Ji himself used to apply gulal to all the guests. The current Prime Minister of the country, Narendra Modi, also used to participate in them. He was then associated with the BJP organization. On this occasion, delicious gujiya and delicious food were arranged. All the arrangements for Atal Ji's Holi Milan at home were made by his close friend Shiv Kumar. He was a permanent face of Atal Ji's house. Those who participated in the Holi Milan celebrations at Atal Ji's house were sure to get Balushahi from Ghante Wale of Chandni Chowk or Bangla Sweet House of Gol Market.
Holi has also been celebrated with great love at Lal Krishna Advani's residence on Prithviraj Road. Gujiya from the famous sweet shops of Bengali Market was served to everyone. The colors of Holi at Advani Ji's house also remained within the limits of decency. Holi has also been celebrated with great love at the residence of senior BJP leader Lal Krishna Advani on Prithviraj Road. The Holi of Lal Krishna Advani's Pandara Park C-1/6 flat used to be very famous. Atal Bihari Vajpayee and all the dignitaries also used to be present in it. All friends and party workers who came to play Holi were definitely made to eat sweets. Food was also arranged for all the guests. Advani Ji's wife, Kamala Advani Ji (now deceased), used to ensure that all the guests left only after having a full meal. But after the death of Kamala Advani Ji, Advani Ji's Holi Milan has remained symbolic.
As the President of the country, Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam celebrated Holi in 2003 with about 1200 children from the Municipal Corporation and schools in the Rashtrapati Bhavan complex. Dr. Kalam stayed with these children for about two hours. Perhaps no President before or after him played Holi with children like Kalam Sahib.
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