καιρός remembered

Funfair Ganesha

Popular Hindu pilgrimage sites, with their newly built temples and statues of deities, all too often bear witness to poor taste. In Haridwar, for example, where this photograph was taken, there is a long row of new temples that seem to be competing for first prize for tacky and kitsch design. Why is that? These monuments inevitably reflect the popular taste of the nouveau riche Indians who donate part of their – probably ill-gotten – wealth towards their construction. When I walk, along with thousands of others, amongst such a jumble of colourful structures, it feels as though I’m in an amusement park; the quintessential sight of ‘fairground Hinduism’.

Photo of the week: Hardwar, India, 1995