Holi celebrations began early on Thursday morning in the national capital with squeals of laughter echoing young and old alike through dry colour on each other.
Soon enough, buckets full of coloured water were squirted through 'pichkaris', drenching everyone within range.
In south Delhi's Katwaria Sarai area, young boys aimed balloons filled with colored water at passers by, especially at girls. Not to be left behind, the girls retaliated in an equally colourful manner.
"I usually don't play Holi but my friends from college dragged me out of my room and poured two buckets of coloured water on me!," a drenched Rajiv told agencies before joining his equally drenched friends.
Streets in Delhi were colored in all shades of yellow, red, green, purple. The vibrant colours jostled for prominence as people smeared 'gulal' on each other and distributed sweets to celebrate.
Small bands of children, armed with 'pichkaris' filled with coloured water, sprayed unwary passersby with coloured water and ran away, shouting 'Holi hai!'(It's Holi!).
Abhinav, 11, had tucked his shirt in his knickers and had stuffed the shirt with water-filled balloons. Ruffled hair full of gulal and clothes drenched in pink and purple, he looked the posterboy of Holi.
"I will color everyone with them," he said when asked about the balloons stuffed in his shirt.
In crowded urban pockets, the celebrations were more robust. Large bands of revellers, armed with coloured water -- deep purple, black and silver -- smeared anyone they came across with colour.
Sweets, especially the traditional gujiyas, were the order of the day as people exchanged them and greeted each other. The more adventurous downed thandai (cold drink)laced with bhang to add zest to their celebrations.
The festival is associated with the legend of demon king Hiranyakashyapu whose son, Prahlad was a devotee of Vishnu. It symbolises victory of good over evil and is one of the most prominent Hindu festivals.
Delhi Police is also out on streets in large numbers to maintain law and order.
However, the morning commuters faced some hassle as only auto rickshaws plied on roads. The public transport, such as buses and metro wil be shut till around noon.
Some revelers, who had played Holi earlier on Wednesday, especially office goers playing in their offices, faced trouble going home as the Metro security guards reportedly denied entry to the more extreme cases. The guards cited safety concerns as the reason.
"It's difficult to recognise people if they have too much color on their faces. We told such people to either wash their face or leave the premises," a security guard at Hauz Khas Metro station told agencies on Wednesday.