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Men in the Street
During the Kumbh Mela, the Haridwar streets were full of life and people.
India is in the news at the moment – because of Covid.
In spite of the fast-tracking of any vaccines the country can get hold of, a second wave of virus variants is sweeping the country. India now has the second
Couple this with a huge disparity in access to health, nutrition, and welfare services according to one’s place among the steeply-separated socio-economic classes – and the country’s inability to maintain any kind of preventative measures – and you have a recipe for disaster.
I was amazed to read that the state governments had refused to call off this year’s weeks-long Hindu festival of Kumbh Mela in Haridwar. Indian cities – including the sacred city of Haridwar – are wonderfully crowded and chaotic at the most ‘ordinary’ of times, and an unimaginable crush (see: A Crush of Happy Humanity) during a Kumbh Mela.
As I’ve written before (eg: Faces in the Crowd), a Kumbh Mela is a Hindu festival that takes place roughly every three years at one of four sacred pilgrimage sites. UNECO-listed for its rich cultural importance, this mela (festival) has been called the largest peaceful congregation of pilgrims on earth. The last was held across 55 days at Triveni Sangam in Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh. It attracted more than 200 million people, with 50 million attending on the festival’s most auspicious day. This year, numbers are well down, but not low enough to allow for social distancing: between 3.1 and 5 million people are expected on the equivalent days (see: The Conversation; India Today).
I was at the last mela in Haridwar, Uttarakhand, and found the press of humanity in the streets quite staggering (see: Crowds on the Move). On the most auspicious day – February 14th, 2010, when the attached pictures were taken – an estimated 10 million people took their ritual bath in the Ganges.
On the busiest days, I stayed well away from the bathing ghats themselves, and instead wandered around the arterial roads as pilgrims walked in and out of the city’s centre. Many of these pilgrims were happy to chat and wanted their pictures taken.
I’m always amazed how open and friendly so many people are in these foreign environments. Either side of the main roads, people in shops, homes, and temples got on with their every-day lives, and I was often welcomed in. At one point, I was admiring the beautiful facade of a building when a teenage girl with good English came out to ask me what I was doing. When I told her I was taking pictures because the building was so lovely, she went inside and consulted with her mum. I was invited in for tea – where I got to meet some of the five generations living in the home, and was given an explanation of the ritual offerings to the Mother Ganges that I had been a part of a few days prior.
It is almost impossible to imagine this happening here in my neighbourhood!
Join me for some portraits of the locals and visitors to Haridwar:
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Riding into Haridwar
On foot or by rickshaw, the sadhus arrive into Haridwar.
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A Man and his Sewing Machine
Street traders and vendors are kept busy as the pilgrims keep coming.
Street Sewing Machine
Every-day life goes on around the busy streets.
Sadhu in White
There are temples and sadhus …
Sadhu in Red
… in every nook and cranny I check out.
Man in a Bindi
Many of the pilgrims stop for a bindi and a blessing before they continue to the bathing ghats.
Old Man in Glasses
Girl in Red
People in the Street
Housing Doorway
When I was caught photographing this lovely entry way from outside the front fence …
Woman in her Doorway
… mum came out to size me up. Deciding I was harmless, she invited me in for tea!
Young Woman
I then got to make portraits of her beautiful daughters against the rich textures of the outer building …
Young Woman in Pink
… or against the colourful fabrics adorning the walls indoors.
Auntie and her Son
It is not uncommon for extended family to have their own rooms within a shared housing complex.
Smiling Young Woman
The Matriarch
Several generations were under the one roof, and this was clearly the matriarch. There was an older woman in the central living room where we shared tea, but she was frail, and had clearly relinquished charge of the household.
Charismatic Eyes
Back in the streets, the crowds keep walking, …
Colourful Women
… or stop for a rest and a chat.
Hennaed Hands
Henna is thought to bring positive spirits and good luck; the women walking into town were happy to show off their beautiful designs.
Sadhu in Saffron
I find the sadhu’s endlessly fascinating …
Masala Chai
… and enigmatic.
Smoking his Chillum
They travel light: just a blanket, a prayer book, a small bag of personal items, a container for holy water, and a chillum: a conical clay pipe.
Woman in Red
I love the vibrant colours …
Woman in Yellow
… and the elegance of the women.
Makeshift Campsite
The travellers make do with very little.
Woman Smoking
Cigarette breaks are welcome …
Smiling Girl
… and smiles are freely given.
Young Friends Travelling Together
Hindus believe the Ganges is holy and that bathing in it will cleanse them of their sins and bring salvation – especially during a Kumbh Mela, which some call a Festival of Immortality.
The Uttarakhand Chief Minister has recently been quoted as saying “faith in God will overcome the fear of the virus”; let us hope the sacred waters of the Mother Ganges mitigate the “super spreader” effect that many people expect from the current mela.
Safe Travels!
Photos: 14April2010
