Video of India festival

Women in saris at the Kumbh Mela 2010, Haridwar, India

At the Kumbh Mela 2010, Haridwar, India

Video of Kumbh Mela ceremony

This is a video of the aarti (ceremony to honour the Ganges River) that happens each day at dusk in Haridwar, India. I took this during the Kumbh Mela, the largest religious gathering on earth. I was standing on a media platform in Har-ki-Pauri, the sacred centre of Haridwar. Notice how the Indian authorities set up the media platform with a electrical wires marring the view of the aarti! But still, I think I got a lovely shot of women int he crowd when I panned down across the river to the side I was on. Of course, a modest video like this in no way captures the heat, the smells, the enormous size of the crowd and the intense devotional energy that was palpable in the air. It was an amazing experience to be there. A privilege, really.


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About Mariellen Ward

Mariellen Ward is a professional travel writer, blogger and editor based in Toronto and Delhi. Her award-winning travel blog Breathedreamgo.com is inspired by her extensive travels in India and South Asia. She writes for many print and online sites, self-published a book of travel stories, Song of India, and co-founded the Toronto Travel Massive, a successful monthly meet-up group for travel bloggers and industry.

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2 Responses to Video of India festival

  1. Andi July 12, 2010 at 4:44 pm #

    What an incredible experience! I loved watching this video.

  2. lara dunston July 24, 2010 at 12:25 pm #

    Wow! Amazing! Do you have any photos of this or any other ceremonies or festivals? You should enter our current Grantourismo competition – one week left! – the first prize is a holiday stay anywhere in the world. Choose wisely and you could get a 10 night stay in Goa (or anywhere really)! Hope to see an entry from you! ;)

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