Rato Machhindranath (translation: the red god of fishes) is considered to be the “God of Rain” by the Nepalese Hindus and Buddhists. Rato Machhindranath Jatra is a month long chariot festival wherein the god is placed in a big chariot (almost 60 ft high) and is pulled around the city of Patan (also known as Lalitpur). The whole procession takes almost a month or longer as the chariot is rested in various places for several days before proceeding further. Well, if you want to know more about this awesome festival in Nepal, you can simply Google the phrase “rato machhindranath jatra”. The primary purpose of this post is to share a few of my experiences when I went out for a photo walk that day.

The gear

My colleagues had set up a photo walk on a Saturday to collect some photos for our company gallery. We were three in number and the gear that we carried were

Sony A7II Sony A6300 Sony RX100II

I felt very lucky as they handed me the latest Sony A6300 which had gathered all the hype thanks to it awesome focusing technology. So, all the photos that you see in this post was taken by the Sony A6300 with the 16-50mm kit lens.

Photo walk experience

When we planned to go take photos of the chariot and the surroundings, the chariot was rested at Lagankhel in Patan. We met there at 7 in the morning and as it was a Saturday, the first thing that we noticed was a huge crowd around the chariot. We were totally awestruck after seeing the crowd. Personally I was already evaluating in my mind if it would be possible to even go near the chariot to take photos.

So here is what we did. We moved around the chariot and “surveyed” the area. There were various other holy activities going on around that area which we could photograph. For example, below is a photo of some senior members of the community who were praying by singing “bhajan” (holy songs to praise the almighty) in front of the chariot.

Similarly, we could see locals selling colorful balloons and wax lamps, even selfie sticks around the locality. This certainly made the environment quite colorful, vibrant, and joyous to see. People were offering candle lamps and praying to lord Bhairab (the lord of strength) who resides at the front of the chariot.

It was definitely not an easy task to be so close to the chariot to take this photo. The rush of people behind me were pushing me as they passed by and the flames on the front were so hot that I could feel the burn on the side of my face. Also, the smoke produced by the burning of the candle lamps and incense made the environment hazy and sometimes difficult to breathe. I was however happy that I was carrying a small bag that day. In case I had carried a bigger bag, it would have made the people behind me more inconvenient which would have caused them to push me more. So may be you can consider this if you are going out to similar places to photograph next time.

Then as I moved from the front of the chariot towards the side, this is where I could see the huge mass of people worshiping and gathered around the chariot. People were lined up to make offerings to the God. The person on the chariot would also distribute holy water and holy food “prasad” to the dieties and people would hustle to get some of those. Below are the two photos which show this.

I was quite fascinated after seeing this version of “begging”. How we offer and beg to the almighty but would neglect the real ones in need. Mind you, there were around 10-12 people around the chariot begging for survival. Lord help them too. And finally, when I reached around the back of the chariot I was fascinated to see how the chariot was being supported by a thick rope, nailed to the ground.

A few take away from this experience:

If you are going to photograph some place crowded like this don’t bring along heavy bag and equipment. Even a tripod would have been useless in my case.

Take care of your belongings. I kept my wallet and my phone on the front pocket. The rush of people was so huge at times that anybody could have stolen from my bag without me knowing.

Be sure to go around your area of interest. Sometimes you will find the most interesting shots in the most unexpected places.

Don’t annoy the people who have come to pray by blocking their way for long.

The priests constantly sprinkle holy water “jal” towards the crowd. If your camera and lenses are not weather resistant, be sure to protect them.

Cameras with articulating screen will help.

While moving out to take photos early morning, be sure to have something to eat in your backpack. If there are places nearby, then refuel your body when needed. You will need that energy.