These photos were taken on January 12, 2001.

At a cross-roads into the city. Would you want to be the policeman holding this lot back?
Two days to go for the first shahi snan bathing day on 14^th January. Roads into Allahabad will be closed to general traffic from tomorrow so it will be the time of the rickshaw and horse-drawn carriage. This photograph shows traffic moving only one way – into the city.

Madhur Brahamanand, a gentle soul after my own Heart. His sweet smile, not evident in the photograph, elevated me. He has been here for four days and will be going back home some 200 km to the east after the last significant bathing day of this Mela - 29^th January. When I asked him why he was here, he threw the question right back at me and when I told him why I was here he said ‘Well! Now you know why I am here’. Thanks for the lesson Brahamanand.

Hari Das from Ayodhya, a town 170 km to the north of Allahabad. There is a huge struggle going on up there between the secular soul of India and the Hindu fundamentalists, who are well represented here at Kumbh Mela. Hari Das has been here since 4^th January and will remain here until 8^th February. He stays in one of the akaharas located in the background. He is here because ‘who can possibly miss such an event’. He is constantly doing japa (repeating his mantra)

A view of the mela area taken from the Lal Bahadur Shastri bridge on the old grand trunk road which has connected Calcutta to Delhi for generations.

Milk finds its way into the city no matter what. There seems to be enough milk around no matter how many cups of tea get consumed.

Panoramic view assembled from three photos. Just imagine that in a few months time following the snowmelt in the Himalaya the Ganga will sweep through this area leaving not a trace of what was here before. This torrent becomes a flood when the rains come from August to October.