Many rituals hearken back to atavistic practices as old as this ancient land, and carry enormous resonance for those who enact them. In Asra and other villages not far from the grand going-on in Amravati, locals parade small boys wrapped in neem leaves and throw water on them. Ramesh Deshmukh, who organises the ritual, called dhondi, says, "at least it distracts us from how awful things are right now. Besides, you never know what might work." Meanwhile, in Orissa, frogs have been married to each other, though precautions are taken to control jumpy grooms. Likewise, care is taken with brides too ready to use their strong teeth at donkey weddings in rural Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. And luckless chickens are gloomily contemplating fate as their life’s blood spurts for rain’s sake on to dry-as-dust soil.
These ceremonies serve one critical purpose. In an unrelentingly harsh environment that has driven too many to hopelessness and suicide, they offer that most fundamental of comforts; hope and a reason for tomorrow.
