Holi party in King's Cross

Holi at Dishoom

Holi’s great, isn’t it?

Cast your sins into the fire. Throw colours with random strangers, and random abandon. Laugh freely and joyously. Dance. Laugh again. Try to shake the colour out of your hair and try to beat the colour out of your clothes. Enjoy the sight of elderly grandparents, tiny children and everyone in between – all doing the same thing, all covered in glorious technicolour. Enjoy how surreal it is. Enjoy how magical it feels.

In our case, all in a big shed in Hackney. For all of you who were there, you’ll know how much fun it was. There was no actual bhang in our lassi, but everyone seemed as high as kites. People who had never met before were rubbing powder paint in one another’s faces, dancing and improvising a conga. And in a way, I think this is exactly what we need more of in London.

One thing is for sure; London is growing. Our city is getting busier and more crowded. We Londoners are forever moaning about accelerating property prices, and more flash sports cars seem to be racing pointlessly up and down Knightsbridge. And as the city grows, I’d like to think we can make sure that it’s truly a shared city. That all of us find ways to have fun together, to break down barriers, to leave aside differences and celebrate each others’ culture. Even if it’s only for a few short hours, it’s really important. A city that doesn’t do this becomes a nervous and divided city, full of suspicion; a sad dystopia. Let’s never let that happen to London.

So, in that spirit, we promise to keep throwing our Holi parties, if you’ll all keep coming!

Enjoy our little video of this year’s Holi, see the (massive) photo gallery – tag yourself if you were there. And, most importantly of all, come next year!

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Suggested Reading

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Ayesha Erkin shares one of her delectable date recipes

We’re turning page after page of Ayesha Erkin’s recipe book Date of the Day, featuring 30+ recipes for the modest date – timely for breaking fast and after. Our dear friend Ayesha has now kindly shared a recipe for you to make at home. Try it this Iftar or any time you need a salty-spiced sticky treat.

Celebrate Iftar with Dishoom

The holy month of Ramadan is upon us, when Muslims around the world fast daily from dawn till dusk. It is a time of private worship and spiritual discipline, but also of shared joy and abundant feasting. Families and communities come together at suhoor, the pre-dawn meal, and at iftar, the evening meal, to break their fasts with copious, delicious dishes. Join us on 7th April for our own Iftar celebration – for an evening of feasting and live music.

Caring hands at Ramadan

Ramadan

We often find it too easy to hurtle through the days, in an attempt to outpace the bustling city – be it London or Bombay – which always seems to be running away like a steam-engine train on a rickety track. Occasionally, it does us good to pause for thought, to disembark the carriage and sit on the platform awhile.

Dishoom's Cheese & Masala Sticks Recipe

The month of Ramadan may be a period of fasting but it’s equally synonymous with feasting. Iftar – the evening meal with which Muslims break their fast – is an occasion for eating favourite dishes and indulging in the naughtiness of moreish snacks after a day of abstaining, and these cheese-and-pastry twirls make the perfect snack.