Kanwariyas go wild, in Haridwar

From the archive record

Kanwarias, as they're popularly called, are devotees of Shiva. Kanwarias behaving bratty and dancing on the banks of the Ganges river at Haridwar on the occasion of Shivratri. The kanwaria practice seems to have been fuelled in recent times, partly perhaps by saffron resurgence in north India, and entire national highways get blocked off for weeks on end, to allow the crowds of kanwarias to return to their villages or move to Haridwar! But like it or not, this is modern day religiosity at its fervent best! This footage is part of the professionally-shot stock footage archive of Wilderness Films India Ltd., the largest collection of imagery from South Asia. The Wilderness Films India collection comprises of thousands of hours of high quality broadcast imagery, mostly shot on HDCAM 1080i Hig