Hundreds of Indians Fast to Death Every Year in Ancient Santhara Ritual
Fasting is a common religious practice in several cultures across the world, but few are as hardcore as ‘Santhara’. The exacting ritual is a part of Jainism, one of the oldest religions in the world, and it involves participants making an oath to stop eating until they literally die of starvation. According to the Jains, […]
Indian Hindu Leaders Launch Beauty Products Made with Cow Dung
The Visha Hindu Parishad (VHP), a right-wing non-governmental organization in India, has recently launched a line of beauty products containing two very special ingredients – cow dung and gau mutra. “The use of gau mutra in medicines and beauty products will help farmers and prevent them from selling cows. Ayurveda talks about use of cow […]
8-Year-Old ‘Human Calendar’ Can Accurately Calculate Any Day-Date Configuration until 2068
At first glance, Aryan Parab looks like a regular eight-year-old kid; he likes going to school and playing football with his mates. But ask him a few questions about future dates and you’ll realize that he’s actually a mathematical genius with superhuman computational skills. The boy can work out the day on which any date […]
Indian Temple Has 600 Barbers Shaving 20,000 Heads a Day
The Seshachalam Hills in Southern India are home to one of the nation’s most popular pilgrimage destinations – the town of Tirumala. Each year, millions of pilgrims display their devotion for the presiding deity, Sri Venkateswara, in the most bizarre fashion – by tonsuring their heads! There’s actually a rather interesting story behind the unusual practice – […]
The Most Remarkable Newspaper in the World Is Written by a Bunch of Indian Street Kids
‘Balaknama’, or ‘Children’s Voice’, is a quarterly publication that’s completely written and run by children living in New Delhi’s slums. With a readership in the tens of thousands, the newspaper is being hailed as one of the most impressive in the world. Backed by the Indian non-profit organisation Chetna, Balaknama publishes contributions from a federation […]
World’s Largest Turban – Indian Man Wears Headgear That Weighs 100 Pounds
Avtar Singh Mauni, from Punjab, India, is the proud owner of the world’s largest turban. The devout Sikh’s enormous headgear consists of no less than 645 meters of fabric, weighing 100 pounds. It took him a staggering 16 years to assemble, and he needs to spend six hours just to put it on. And you […]
Indian Priests Smash Coconuts on Devotees’ Heads in Bizarre Good Luck Ritual
Every year, thousands of devotees travel to a remote village in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu to put themselves through a gruesome ritual that they hope will bring them good health and success. Believe it or not, men, women and even children willingly permit priests to smash hard coconuts on their skulls! Breaking […]
The Amazing Story of the Suicidal Man Who Became India’s Famous Monkey Climber
Several years ago, young Jyothi Raj was a depressed man – he chose a rock and decided to climb it before plunging to his death. The huge rock presented a dilemma – there was no easy route to reach the top. But Jyothi Raj managed to scale it anyway, by observing and emulating the monkeys […]
What Is It with Wealthy Indian Men and Solid Gold Shirts?
When we wrote about Datta Phuge, an Indian businessman who owns a 3.2-kilogram solid gold shirt, we thought that his was a unique story. But it turns out there are other rich men in India obsessed with gold – like Pankaj Parakh, a businessman and local politician who celebrated his 45th birthday by gifting himself […]
New Delhi Restaurant Run by Indian Convicts Proves Big Hit
Tihar Food Court, a new restaurant in New Delhi, serves its customers a regular fare of north Indian dishes – rice, flatbreads, lentils, samosas, and more. You’d probably get to eat these dishes at many other restaurants in India’s capital, but here’s what’s special about Tihar Food Court – the food is prepared and served […]
The Indian Strongman Village Where All the Men Train to Become Bouncers
For centuries, farming was the main source of income for the people of Asola-Fatehpur Beri, twin villages in northern India. But in recent times, the men of Asola have managed to completely reinvent themselves – from poor farmers to strong, well-built bodyguards. Today, almost 90 percent of the men from the 50,000-strong village are employed […]
Indian Man Claims He Can Help People Lose Weight with Ultrasounds He Emits from His Vocal Cords
A lot of people want to lose weight quite badly, but is there anyone desperate enough to try this Indian man’s weird technique? Jigar Shah, from the city of Ahmedabad, claims that he can induce weight loss in a person just by using his vocal cords to emit ultrasounds. He also says that he’s helped […]
Indian “Snake Man” Charms the World’s Deadliest Snakes
40-year-old wildlife conservationist Vava Suresh has a way with snakes. His life’s mission is to ‘love and guard’ even the most venomous of slithery creatures – he’s already rescued over 30,000 snakes so far. His unique talent and hobby have earned him the nickname ‘Snake Man’; people all over the South Indian state of Kerala […]
Color-Obsessed Real Estate Agent Surrounds Himself with Red and White
In a bid to make himself instantly recognizable, an Indian real estate agent has surrounded himself with the colors red and white. The man is so obsessed with these colors that they feature in all his clothes, in his car, and his home. He even buys his toothpaste in a red-and-white tube, with a toothbrush […]
You’re Not Really a Vegetarian Unless You’re Drinking Vegetarian Water
An Indian home appliance company recently introduced the idea of ‘vegetarian water’ in an ad campaign, to appeal to their predominantly vegetarian customer-base. It might seem absurd, but they’ve tried hard to make it sound convincing – they claim that their new product, the Prestige LifeStraw water purifier, ‘gives only pure and vegetarian water’. “Pure […]