An artist (R) gives finishing touches to a New Year mural painted on his house in Chennai on December 29, 2022. (Photo by Arun Sankar/AFP Photo)

A woman kisses her mother during a New Year's Eve party in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines on December 31, 2022. (Photo by Eloisa Lopez/Reuters)

A girl with white powder on her face celebrates the Songkran holiday which marks the Thai New Year in Bangkok, Thailand, on April 14, 2024. (Photo by Chalinee Thirasupa/Reuters)

People play with water as they celebrate the Songkran holiday which marks the Thai New Year in Bangkok, Thailand, on April 13, 2024. (Photo by Chalinee Thirasupa/Reuters)

Women dressed in traditional attire participate in a procession to mark Gudi Padwa or the Marathi New Year in Mumbai, India, Sunday, March 30, 2025. (Photo by Rajanish Kakade/AP Photo)

Revellers play with water as they celebrate the Songkran holiday, which marks the Thai New Year, in Bangkok, Thailand, on April 13, 2025. (Photo by Chalinee Thirasupa/Reuters)

It’s a tradition that dates back hundreds of years, where two stallions fight over a female to ring the Chinese new year. And when it’s the Year of the Horse, the fights are considered to be even more significant. They’re held in small villages across southern China and have been condemned by animal rights groups, including Hong-Kong based Animals Asia. But those who participate in the events defend the fights and insist they take care of the animals.

A woman scales fish by the side of a lake as she prepares for the upcoming Chinese Lunar New Year in Suqian, Jiangsu province, China, January 27, 2016. (Photo by Reuters/China Daily)