BUÑOL, Spain — A picturesque Spanish town became a sea of red as thousands of festivalgoers flocked to Buñol on Wednesday. This lively gathering, inspired in part by a popular Bollywood movie, was for the annual La Tomatina event, where participants engage in a spirited tomato fight.
Amid the excitement, trucks full of tomatoes crept through the bustling throng, with passengers hurling the juicy fruit at the eager crowd below. Festival participants enthusiastically returned the favor, chucking tomatoes back and forth in an exhilarating exchange.
Initially pristine white shirts quickly transformed into shades of pink and red, with pop tunes adding a vibrant soundtrack to the festivities, resonating from speakers strategically positioned throughout the area.
Although tensions flared momentarily with law enforcement reportedly dispersing a section of the crowd with pepper spray, the celebratory atmosphere rapidly bounced back to its original jubilance.
The lively chaos lasted for more than an hour, as locals had diligently draped the town’s buildings in tarps to brace for the colorful onslaught, ensuring the event unfolded without a hitch.
Held on the last Wednesday of August, the festival traces its origins to a food fight in 1945.
La Tomatina became an annual tradition before Spanish dictator Gen. Francisco Franco banned it in the 1950s.
Televised media attention in the 1980s helped turn the festival into a national event, and eventually, an international attraction.
More than 20,000 people were expected to take part this year, with the Spanish news agency EFE reporting this week that roughly 40% of participants over the past three years have been tourists from outside Spain.
There has been a notable jump in visitors from India in recent years, following the 2011 Bollywood movie “Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara” (“You Only Live Once”), in which three friends take a road trip through Spain during an extended bachelor party.
The film recreated La Tomatina, introducing the festival to many Indians.
The movie is what first drew Romail Khokhar, a 27-year-old from Mumbai, to Buñol. He was there on Wednesday morning, eager to participate in the food fight for his third time.
Mazhar and Sanya Khan, both 40, were likewise inspired by the film.
“It was fantastic, absolutely well-managed,” said Mazhar Khan. “We are from India, and this is our first time being in La Tomatina. It has been a dream for over a decade.”
The movie’s appeal isn’t limited to Indians. It also drew Joanna Wytrzyszczewska from Poland.
“Way more crazy than we expected,” said Wytrzyszczewska, 32. “We came because we were inspired by a movie. It was better than the movie.”
Similar tomato-flinging events have taken place in Florida, London, Amsterdam, the Colombian town of Sutamarchán and Hyderabad, India.
Non-local attendees pay 15 euros ($17.50) for a ticket.
The first and only rule: Squash your tomatoes before hurling them to avoid injuries.
Still, many participants don swimming goggles and earplugs for protection.
Once the hour was up, the sound of a cannon blast marked the end of festivities and crowds washed off at communal showers nearby.
The town’s streets were later hosed down.
Though stains on clothes can be permanent, the tomatoes’ citric acid acts as a cleaning agent, often leaving Buñol’s streets cleaner than before.