Apple marks Holi festival with Instagram 'Shot on iPhone' commissions

Apple has published a series of images to its Instagram account to mark the Hindu festival of Holi, commissioning photographer Dhruvin S. to shoot images featuring the festival's signature powder using the iPhone.

Published on Saturday night to Instagram, the set of eight photographs are close-up shots of people's faces, cropped closely to highlight a section of skin or to focus on one facial feature. All of the subjects of the images are covered in Holi powder, a colorful substance that is heavily used in the celebrations.

"I never imagined Holi as a form of art," said photographer Dhruvin S. "It's almost like creating a canvas on a face. And you don't have to be a painter or an artist to do this."

The images are part of Apple's long-running "Shot on iPhone" marketing program, where photographs and videos are produced using devices like the iPhone 12 or iPhone 12 Pro.

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The Holi festival, also known as the "festival of love" and the "festival of colors," takes pace from March 28 until March 29. Typically used as a time for people to meet others and to forgive and forget, celebrations are known to involve the throwing of colored powder and dye-filled water balloons, as part of parades and other festivities.

This is not the first time Apple has used the festival to showcase the imaging capabilities of its devices. In 2018, the company shared images of people covered with the dust, all taken on iPhones.

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15 Comments

wood1208 2930 comments · 10 Years

About 3 years ago

Apple finds a way to be part of every culture's festival!

JinTech 1050 comments · 9 Years

wood1208 said:

Apple finds a way to be part of every culture's festival!

Why not? Those pictures are stunning.

leighr 256 comments · 15 Years

So, just wondering, does Apple also promote other religions such as Christianity at Easter?

spock1234 163 comments · 11 Years

leighr said:

So, just wondering, does Apple also promote other religions such as Christianity at Easter?

Passive-Aggressive much?! Apple is not promoting any religion - it’s just using a festival to promote their products.

Why do you care anyway? You people don’t believe in Science, and think that everything was created by the invisible man in the sky. So, accept that this is all part of His plan and stop whining!

Besides, Apple is in the midst of reworking their India strategy. Apple is using this occasion to promote the iPhone because most Indians celebrate Holi. If a billion Indians celebrated Easter, Apple would promote that too.

spock1234 said:

leighr said:

So, just wondering, does Apple also promote other religions such as Christianity at Easter?

Passive-Aggressive much?! Apple is not promoting any religion - it’s just using a festival to promote their products.

Why do you care anyway? You people don’t believe in Science, and think that everything was created by the invisible man in the sky. So, accept that this is all part of His plan and stop whining!
Besides, Apple is in the midst of reworking their India strategy. Apple is using this occasion to promote the iPhone because most Indians celebrate Holi. If a billion Indians celebrated Easter, Apple would promote that too.

So, perhaps I should have said: Does Apple do anything to “Mark” other religious festivals such as the Christian celebration of Easter. Just wondering, as it seems that people are ok with mocking Christianity, but respect all other religions. Just an observation.