Ashoka is ditching the water balloons in favor of paint to make this year’s Holi event on the South 40 Swamp less of a mud fight and more of a traditional celebration of color.

Although the group has provided thousands of water balloons at the event in the past, there will be none this year; participants in this year’s event will be given colored powder and tubes of nontoxic finger paint to squeeze at one another.

“It’s more culturally significant because the purpose of Holi isn’t for it to be a water balloon fight,” sophomore and Ashoka cultural co-chair Karuna Tirumala said. “It’s traditionally a color fight, and that’s the way it’s represented in South Asian cultures, and we wanted to take the event back in that direction.”

Megan de Villiers from the Class of 2011 holds a pair of water balloons during Holi on the Swamp in 2009. Water balloons will be swapped in favor of colored powder and finger paint at this Friday’s Holi event.

“Wash. U. as a whole has been moving towards sustainability measures, and we wanted to move forward with Wash. U. instead of continuing to deplete a really important source like water,” sophomore and cultural co-chair Tripti Soni said. “We’re doing this for South Asian cultural awareness, and there isn’t a lot of good drinking water there, so it seems hypocritical to just throw all this water at the ground to make mud.”

“The mud tears up the Swamp every year and makes it really difficult to go on for a few days after, so it’s also easier for facilities and less expensive to move away from water balloons,” she added.

A potential reconstruction of the Swamp in the next few years will also make it less feasible for Holi to be held there in the future.

“We figured it would be an easier switch if we consciously made the decision to change this year instead of being forced to re-evaluate plans in the future,” Tirumala said. “We’d been thinking of moving away from water balloons over break and listening to all of the arguments for sustainability and eventually came to our own decision.”

The co-chairs also noted that the weather on the day of Holi every year tends to be unfavorable, and adding water to the mix makes attendance poorer than it would be on a nicer day because of student fears of getting sick or too muddy. They hope that a switch away from water and mud will make people more inclined to attend.

Student reactions to the change have generally been positive.

“I think it’s a really good idea to not use water, especially considering how cold it was last year,” sophomore Aleks Husic said. “Using paint seems like it’s sticking more close to tradition and makes it seem like a more special and cultural event. A water balloon fight is something I’d do with my friends in the summer, but a paint fight is definitely more unique.”

Sophomore Sandya Muchimilli is likewise enthusiastic about the shift toward color in order to maintain the cultural aspects of the celebration.

“I think people will definitely get more of a feel for what Holi is really all about now that they’re using paint because this year will be more colorful,” she said. “I think it’ll also be a lot less messy and muddy, which is a plus because then you don’t have to worry about the aftermath of playing.”

Both cultural co-chairs expressed excitement about the changes made to the event.

“We’re really excited for this year’s Holi,” Tirumala said. “It’s definitely going to be different and have a different vibe—more Dayglow-ish with the paint, probably—but I think it’ll be really fun.”

Tim Lempfert, associate director of Residential Life, could not be reached for comment.