'You don't realise your life has changed in just three days.'
'It's when you come back to the city that it starts hitting you but you now have the power to manage the challenges Life throws at you.'
Sahil Mehta, a 23-year-old Gen Z content creator with over 118,000 followers on Instagram, has been creating videos -- earlier for others as a talent manager and now for himself -- since his college days for "fun".
A mass media graduate from Mumbai's K C College who always wanted to do something on his own, he quit his job in 2023 to pursue his creative passion.
Sahil, who stayed at the Kumbh Mela for three days before which he had visited the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya and later visited the Kashi Vishwanath temple at Varanasi, speaks with Prasanna Zore/Rediff.com about his experience at the world's largest religious gathering.
When was the first time you heard about the Kumbh Mela?
I know that the Kumbh Mela happens every four years; the Ardh Kumbh Mela every six years; the Purna Kumbh Mela every 12 years. The Maha Kumbh Mela takes place once in 144 years.
I am quite religious. I pray regularly. Every year, I make it a point to visit a Hindu holy site. Last year I travelled to Rishikesh and Haridwar.
This year, I knew for sure I had to take a dip in the Ganga and attend the Maha Kumbh.
What motivated you to do this?
I had two things in mind.
As I am a content creator, I wanted to do video differently. I am a Gen Z-er but I haven't seen many Gen Z people visiting the Kumbh.
I wanted to show Gen Z what happens there, why this religious gathering is so important for us Indians and why so many people come to visit the Kumbh and take a dip in the Ganga.
I wanted to give a Gen Z perspective of the Kumbh and I wanted to make it look very raw.
When I thought of doing this, I just booked the flight ticket. The rest of the tour was unplanned -- I had no clue where I would stay or how I would travel from Ayodhya to Prayagraj.
But I was ready for an adventure and told myself the rest of the arrangements could be made on the spot.
Did Sahil's plan work? Find out in the video below after which Sahil continues his explanation.
My flight ticket was only till Ayodhya. After taking the blessings of Ram Lalla, I hitchhiked to Prayagraj for the Maha Kumbh.
I covered half the distance (the total distance between the two pilgrimage towns is 160 kilometres) by hitchhiking; the people who helped me were quite generous.
After covering this distance I came to know from the locals that the Uttar Pradesh government had bus services till Prayagraj and, from where I had reached, it would cost me only Rs 150 to reach Prayagraj.
But the bus ride took me five hours and, by the time I reached Prayagraj, it was past midnight.
All the hotels were full; almost 10 crore (100 million) people had been to the Maha Kumbh by then so the hotels were very expensive as well. I finally rested my head in a hotel's lobby where the kind-hearted manager made arrangements for a big gadda.
So, yes, there was adventure but there was also spiritual awakening.
Were you mentally prepared for something like this?
To be honest, no. I had expected to face some challenges but had no idea the journey would be so raw. But then, it was lot of fun as well.
When I reached the Maha Kumbh, I was told that cars were not allowed; only two wheelers were.
To reach the bathing ghats, one has to walk for almost 10, 11 kilometres and every spot I wanted to visit was at least at a distance of 8, 9 kilometres from one another.
I was not ready for this so I rented a scooter from a local resident, paying Rs 1,000 per day.
One crazy life-changing experience was taking the dip in the Ganga. I reached the bathing ghat at around 4.30 am; the snan (bathing in the Triveni Sangam) happens through the day.
That morning it was so crowded that there was no way we would have reached at the main spot where people take a dip in the Ganga. I was shooting as well and I had all my camera equipment with me.
On the spur of the moment I decided to go for a boat ride; the boat owner was quite enterprising and took us to a place where the government has made safe and secure arrangements for people to bathe.
The water is waist-deep water but there are ropes and poles in place for one to hold on to and take a dip. It was crowded but we got a chance to take the dip.
The snan was an incredible experience. It was 5 in the morning and the mercury had dipped to 12 degree Celsius.
What were your learnings from your visit to the Maha Kumbh? Has it changed you spiritually?
Honestly, it is because I am religious that I visited the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya before I visited the Maha Kumbh, a gathering that last happened in 1881, took a dip there with lakhs of devout people and met the Naga and Aghori sadhus which in itself is a life-changing experience.
After the Maha Kumbh, I went to the Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi for which I travelled an additional 136 kilometres. Visiting and absorbing the religious spirit at these places adds to your spiritual growth.
The sadhus and babas themselves come to you, give their blessings, talk to you and tell you about the significance of the Kumbh Mela.
You feel very good within you and experience an extreme level of positive energy.
You don't realise your life has changed in just three days. It's when you come back to the city that it starts hitting you but you now have the power to manage the challenges Life throws at you.
How has this experience changed you as a person?
It definitely has brought more positivity in me.
I had rented the bike just for a day; during the remaining two days I spent at the Maha Kumbh, I requested people to drop me at the places I wanted to go.
I met this 25-year-old scooter-rider, who helped me travel longer distances and did not even ask for any money. He told me it was his duty to help young people like me understand the true spirit of India.
All the people who helped me in those two days taught me the real value of being human apart, from spiritually awakening me.
None asked for money; everybody wanted to help. All these things made me realise the importance of being Indian and honest and caring.