This was shot 5 years back and every time I went back to Ajmer during the Urus , the sea of beggars was always on the rise , near the Taragadh path towards the mountains there is a huge colony of beggars living in makeshift tents eating living defecating .. and they are happy as Ajmer is hope for them and thanks to the Holy Saint despite the sufferings hardshiips they return home with ample money and surely someone gets a dividend call it protection money , or call it the unseen beggar mafia with its ruthless tentacles ..and every Urus there are the regular beggars and new ones too.
And the Rajasthan government watches from the corner ..and the only one who enjoy the bounty of the state machinery are the VVVIPS they get to the Dargah without being hindered ,the cops literally licking their ass .the common man has to struggle to move ahead and the cops at times can be rude offensive after all it is not their religion..but I have met some good humble god fearing cops too who help the aged and the sick.. but these are not in the majority.
Ajmer administration still does not know how to manage crowds the scenes outside the Ajmer Railway station the apathy neglect of the devotees both by the State and the Railways is horrendously humiliating ..the poor are treated like cattle kicked and pushed around by the chaprasis.
There is no single window for redressal , crooks con men criminals drugaddicts can be found outside the station , the ricksha drivers fleece the commuters and all because during Urus time everyone wants to reach Ajmer and be under the canopy of Khwajah Garib Nawaz the Only Indian Saint of the Poor .
And I shoot beggars to show you that beggars are human too, maybe they dont have the same rights privileges as the common man, they are treated as scums , beggars are appeased by both Muslims Hindus to make a house in heaven through enforced charity , the hotels that cater to give food to the beggars are money spinning units with hired beggars working for them , the food they give to the beggars is not even fit for giving to cats dogs and rats ,, but they make money and expand their empires .. paying off the cops and other bureaucratic pimps and extortionists.
And it is sad that most religious pilgrimage sites have become commercial hubs Money is God .. and beggars are part of this integral Chakra or Wheel of Redemption.
