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Wet, muddy interior of a large open-sided pavilion during a multi-day fire ritual. Men in white dhotis and white shirts stand and kneel on mats, several wearing rudraksha-style beaded malas around their necks. A man in a white dhoti bends over a low raised platform of white-painted bricks on the left, tending a brass vessel. A boy in a white shirt and dark shorts stands with hands clasped on a mat. Scattered water bottles, a brass dish and wet ground fill the foreground, with banners and bamboo posts overhead and a crowd of devotees in white behind.

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A photograph inside a large covered pavilion during a fire ritual, with a muddy wet floor and rows of fire pits lined with white brick. On the left, a man in white dhoti and shirt kneels at a pit tending the fire. Nearby, several men and women in white clothing stand in a crowd, some wearing rudraksha-style garlands and yellow rosettes on their chests. On the right, a bare-footed man in a white shirt and dhoti stands on a woven mat with another man beside him, while a bottle and plastic items lie on the ground. Plastic bottles, banners and hanging lights are visible overhead.2006-07-18A photograph of a large open-sided yagna hall with a corrugated roof and rows of fluorescent tube lights hanging from beams. Wet, muddy ground runs down the centre, with white brick fire-pit platforms on either side. A woman in a white sari kneels at a platform, tending a small fire and pouring from a brass vessel, while nearby figures in white dhotis and shawls stand or sit. A tall pillar wrapped in banana leaves and a decorated cloth stands at the left edge. Banners and printed sheets hang from the roof, and one banner shows a bearded figure in a white turban. The man at right holds a boy in white and wears a white dhoti and shirt, and a tall plain-clothed devotee in a garland stands among the group.2006-07-18A large open hall with a corrugated metal roof, lit by long fluorescent tubes hung from bamboo poles, where many people in white clothing gather around small brick-lined fire pits on a wet, muddy floor. Several men in white shirts and dhotis stoop near the pits, one bending low over a pit with a flat metal vessel, while women in white saris stand nearby. Banners with Tamil script hang on the walls, and banana or sugarcane stalks are tied to the posts. Water pools on the ground around the pits, reflecting the lights. No individual's appearance clearly matches the a person cues, so no candidate is identified.2006-07-18A large open hall with a corrugated metal roof and bright tube lights on bamboo posts shows a fire-offering ritual. Men in white dhotis and shirts stand and sit among rows of small brick fire pits set on a wet, muddy floor. In the foreground a man in white bends over a brick pit, tending a flame or offering on a pan-like vessel. Several people in white and a woman in a white sari stand nearby, and others crowd the background. Green and blue banners hang from the posts, some bearing portraits and Tamil text. No figure is identifiable as a person with confidence.2006-07-18July 17 20062006-07-17A photograph inside a large open-sided pandal with a corrugated roof, its floor wet and muddy with scattered straw. Decorated banana trunks with green leaves and a painted, flower-patterned pillar frame the scene. A white-draped table on the left holds flower-filled plates, fruit and offerings. In the centre, a man in a white dhoti and shawl kneels by a small brick fire pit or altar platform, tending the ritual vessels, while a woman in white stands nearby. Along the right, rows of people in white clothing and a few in saffron or yellow garments stand and sit in the hall, with banners hanging overhead. This appears to be a homa or yajna offering ceremony, with several small platforms set up for fire offerings.2006-07-18 +1 copiesA large open hall filled with many devotees dressed in white seated on mats before tiered white fire altars during a yajna. In the foreground, a man in white with a rudraksha mala folds his hands in prayer beside a white fire pit with a small flame. An older man in white with a mala and a blue badge holds a brass dish and a pot of offerings near another fire pit with red flower offerings. Overhead tube lights hang from a tarpaulin ceiling, and hazy smoke fills the space. Hundreds of people are visible across the hall, so the count is 100+ in total, though only a few are clearly identifiable.2006-07-17A photograph of a large hall with a corrugated roof, filled with many people performing a fire ritual (homa/yajna) at multiple square brick fire pits. Woman in white clothes with a rudraksha mala kneels at the nearest pit, tending a brass vessel beside offerings on a woven mat, including plates of flowers, fruit and white powder. Other participants in white and cream clothes, and women in saris, sit or stand at neighbouring pits and move through the crowd. Palm fronds and strings of leaves hang from wooden posts, and banners with portraits and text line the walls under white fluorescent tubes. Many people are visible, with some partly hidden at the edges.2006-07-18A large open-air yajna hall with a corrugated roof and palm-trunk pillars hung with banners. In the foreground, a tiered white-painted fire altar burns with flames, and a woman in a white sari with a gold border sits beside it holding a tray of petals; a man in white shirt and white dhoti with rudraksha mala and a yellow badge is seated at the altar. Other participants in white garments and rudraksha malas sit on mats across the hall, with several fire pits visible behind. Rose petals lie in a bowl and plastic water bottles sit at the edge. The scene shows a fire offering ritual.2006-07-17A photograph of a fire ritual with devotees seated on the ground in white clothing. In the foreground, a man in a white shirt and white dhoti with a yellow rosette badge sits at a low brick fire pit where flames are burning, hands joined in prayer. Beside him, a younger boy with glasses and a garland presses his palms together, and a brass vessel with a ladle rests on the ground. Behind them, many men and women in white and pale clothing sit in rows under a white canopy, several with hands folded, amid smoke. Wooden poles wrapped with green leaves frame the scene.2006-07-17July 17 20062006-07-17A large open-sided pavilion with a tin roof, rows of tube lights hanging from wooden poles and a sandy floor holds a mass fire-offering ritual. Many people in white clothes sit cross-legged around square white-painted fire altars (homa kundas) with small flames burning. In the foreground, a man in white sits behind a white altar with a brass vessel and a plate of red flowers. A man in white at right serves items on a plate on a mat. Crowds of seated participants fill the background.2006-07-17