‘Lost in Kumbh’ is passé, families now planning reunions, get-together in fair

LUCKNOW: There was a time when Kumbh Mela was known as a place where kin would get separated, which led to coining of Bollywood’s most famous line of ‘Kumbh mein bichhde bhai’. However, this Maha Kumbh is serving a completely opposite purpose by becoming a venue for family reunions and annual get-togethers.
Families from across India, and even abroad, have planned their annual meetings at the Maha Kumbh, which has moved beyond a spiritual festival to a hub of cultural tourism.
Read more: Maha Kumbh stories
Three sisters, Guddi from Dubai, Neetu from the United States, and Shitu from Bengaluru, are taking their parents Ramesh and Sunita Agarwal to Prayagraj on Jan 23 to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. The three sisters are currently in Hyderabad for their fourth sibling’s anniversary.
The plan for a trip to Shirdi and Mumbai was dropped at the last minute once they figured out that they could easily travel to Prayagraj for the Maha Kumbh.
Deepak Panchariya, married to Guddi, is a CA in Dubai and will reach Prayagraj with a group of 14 friends to visit Maha Kumbh in Feb.
“Out of the four sisters, two are NRIs. It’s difficult for all of us to meet regularly. This is a unique opportunity when we are all together and it’s a special occasion when just three of the sisters and their parents will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary at the Kumbh,” Deepak said.
Amit Srivastava from Mumbai has organised his family’s annual get-together at Maha Kumbh this year. “Between Jan 31 and Feb 1, at least 12 people will come together in Prayagraj for the Maha Kumbh. The number may also go up to 18. They include five from Mumbai, including my family and brother, sister, and brother-in-law from Jabalpur, cousin from Delhi, and some family members from Lucknow,” Amit said.
“The oldest person in our group is 58 while the youngest is around 11. All of us try to meet at least once a year and this seemed like a great occasion to come together. For us, visiting Maha Kumbh is a totally spiritual trip and we would also like to inculcate this among children,” he said.
“We will first assemble in Lucknow, head to Varanasi on Jan 30, then to Prayagraj, to Ayodhya on Feb 2, and back to Lucknow from where we will leave for our respective cities,” he said.
Sameer Jaju, a builder from Gurgaon, is travelling to Maha Kumbh with a group of 25 family members and fri ends, for their annual get-together. Most members of this group are from Mumbai and Delhi. “It is very difficult for so many of us to meet.
The Maha Kumbh gave us a great opportunity to not just come together but also to witness this great spectacle. The group comprises my sister, brother-in-law, cousins, and friends. Most of us are in the age group of 35-42 years,” he said.
He said that for those above 55 years, the reason to attend the Maha Kumbh was largely spiritual but for others, it was a fascination with the scale of the event and to be part of a historic festival.
“Flying to Prayagraj is very expensive so we may stay in Varanasi to which tickets are still affordable. From there we will probably do a day’s trip to Prayagraj where we will also take a dip in the Sangam,” Jaju said.