In yet another remarkable event from the Maha Kumbh Mela, an episode has come to light where an elderly woman stealthily ran away from her home to attend the ongoing religious festival in Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj.
In an interview with an NDTV reporter, the woman, whose identity remains undisclosed, shared that it is a frequent occurrence for her to sneak away from home to attend Kumbh Melas or Kathas, much to the worry of her son.
The interview shows the old woman surrounded by a crowd as she narrates her impressive feat of reaching the religious gathering without notifying her family. “I have only informed my granddaughter Khushi before leaving, not my son as he does not let me go. He is worried that I will fall ill or get injured.”
When asked how she got to the Maha Kumbh, the elderly woman replies, “My son goes to the shop at 2:00 pm, I left for the (railway) station while he was not at home.” The woman adds that she plans to stay at the meal for a month.
When the reporter urges her to inform someone from her house she replies, “If I call my son he will start crying so I will not call him. I will call my granddaughter and inform her.”
The elderly woman also narrates her experiences of visiting Kumbh melas for the last 80 years. She describes how she even attended the Mela as a 5-year-old with her father, leaving the internet in awe of her determination and bravery.
“I have been visiting Kumbh since 1945 and I have taken a dip at all four locations – Nasik, Ujjain, Haridwar and Prayagraj,” she says.
