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A dense crowd of men fills a street at night during a festival procession. In the foreground, several bare-chested sadhus smeared with white ash dance with raised arms, some with grey-white bodies and white-painted faces. A man in an orange turban holds a long wooden staff with an orange cloth tied to it, and wears beads around his neck. On the right, a sadhu in orange robes and a red rudraksha mala raises his hand. Spectators in shirts, kurtas and a pink-and-white checked scarf press around them, and a yellow banner on a pole rises above the crowd.

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A dense crowd of Kumbh-style sadhus during a shahi snan procession. Many naked or near-naked ascetics have their bodies and faces smeared with white ash, some with long matted hair and beards, several raising fists and arms and shouting. One bald ascetic in the centre raises his arm. A tall grey staff or trident pole rises at centre, and some men wear orange or saffron cloths. Ordinary devotees in white shirts and orange shawls press in around them, and a few hold up phones.2016-05-09May 09th 20162016-05-09May 09th 20162016-05-09May 09th 20162016-05-09A dense crowd of men at an outdoor religious gathering, many with bodies smeared in white ash and some bare-chested. A man in the centre wears an orange-saffron dhoti and a red-and-white neck cord, and another in a white cloth and white shirt stands near the middle. Several men wear orange or saffron lower garments, rudraksha-style beads and yellow-and-blue lanyard badges. One man on the right raises a fist. Faces are tense and animated as they press together.2016-05-21A dense crowd of sadhus and devotees at a river bathing ghat during a Kumbh-style shahi snan. Many sadhus have their bodies and faces smeared with white ash, some with long matted hair and grey beards; one shaved-headed sadhu in the centre raises a hand and wears an orange cloth and a white armband. Others in orange and saffron cloths, a man in a blue striped shirt, and a bearded man in white stand among them, with a yellow barrier in the foreground. A water bottle is held up at the upper right. No figure is clearly identifiable as a person, and the visible people are mostly unnamed sadhus and devotees.2016-05-09A large crowd of ash-smeared sadhus, many bare-chested and wearing only loincloths, walks through a dusty road in warm morning light during a procession. Several carry long tridents and staffs decorated with marigold garlands and orange flags. A man in the centre wears an orange-saffron cloth draped over his shoulder, a rudraksha-style mala and a long beard. Bearded elders with matted grey hair raise their hands, and onlookers in the background watch from roadside tents. Banners with portraits hang at the left and right edges.2016-05-09May 09th 20162016-05-09A dense crowd of sadhus and devotees at a Kumbh Mela shahi snaan procession in Ujjain. Many sadhus are smeared with white ash, some with long matted dreadlocks, and one holds a trident and wears a rudraksha mala. Several raise their arms and hands, and a few carry staffs and ceremonial swords. In the foreground a sadhu in saffron clothing and a knitted saffron cap stands with a flower garland. Behind them a red-draped figure carries a decorated trident-topped standard, and a police officer in khaki uniform stands in the crowd. A blue backdrop with a painted figure in orange and red and a printed banner with a portrait are visible above, with strings of lights overhead.2016-05-21A dense crowd of ash-smeared ascetics, many bare-chested and some with long matted hair, raise their arms and shout at a riverside bathing event. Several hold staffs or wooden poles, and a man in an orange cloth stands near the centre. Behind them, devotees in orange and red clothes and white caps press forward, and a television camera operator is visible at the upper right. Dense crowd of physical people; the figures are real, not depicted.2016-05-09A dense crowd of ascetic sadhus in a street procession during a Kumbh-style shahi snan, many bare-chested or in saffron cloth, bodies smeared with white ash. In the left foreground a decorated ceremonial standard with marigold garlands and a red and gold canopy is carried on poles. A bearded sadhu in orange cloth with matted locks and a tilaka holds a rudraksha mala, while a man in pink and another sadhu with raised arm and a grey-white beard are in the crowd. Orange flags and banners line the road under hazy sunlight. No individual is clearly identifiable as a person.2016-05-09Crowded outdoor night scene at a Kumbh-style sadhu gathering. Several ash-smeared naked or near-naked ascetics with matted hair stand among onlookers. At left, a man in white kurta with a pink-and-orange cloth and a tilak holds a long orange-wrapped staff. Behind them, a bare-chested man wears a white tank top, and an older bearded sadhu in orange robes stands near the centre. A bare-chested man with a rudraksha mala stands at right beside a black flag. Many spectators in the foreground, one photographing with a phone. No identifiable a person is visible.2016-05-09