Paper 11: Special Interest Tourism
Module 25: Dark Tourism Historical Development of Tourism and Hospitality in the World
THE DEVELOPMENT TEAM
Principal Investigator Prof. S. P. Bansal Vice Chancellor, Indira Gandhi University, Rewari
Co-Principal Investigator Dr. Prashant K. Gautam Director, UIHTM, Panjab University, Chandigarh
Paper Coordinator Prof. Deepak Raj Gupta School of Hospitality & Tourism Management (SHTM), Jammu University
Content Writer Dr. Arvind Kumar Assistant Professor, Department of Tour & Travel (Head of Department), Vallabh Govt. College, Mandi
Content Reviewer Prof. Pariskhit Manas Director , school of hospitality & tourism management Jammu university, Jammu
ITEMS DESCRIPTION OF MODULE Subject Name Tourism and Hospitality Paper Name Special Interest Tourism Module Title Dark Tourism
Module Id Module no-25 Pre- Requisites Knowledge about dark tourism in India Objectives To study dark tourism in India, potential historic places for dark tourism in India and initiatives to promote dark tourism in India. Keywords Dark tourism, historic, initiative and promotion.
TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Learning Outcome 2. Introduction 3. Dark tourism in India 4. Potential historical places for dark tourism in India 5. Initiatives to promote dark tourism in India 6. Summary
QUADRANT-I
1. Learning Outcome After reading this module students will be able to: i. Know about dark tourism in India. ii. Potential historical places for dark tourism in India. iii. Initiatives to promote dark tourism in India.
2. Introduction As we know that dark tourism deals with visits and different tour and travel activities to places concerned with mass level deaths, murders and enormous casualties of soldiers / people during wars. India is a big country with an even bigger population (Almost 1 in every 5 people is Indian), great diversity and a long and convoluted history, including a prolonged period of British colonialism. The latter and the struggle for independence provide the majority of heritage sites that are of dark-tourism interest today. But there are also more contemporary and at least equally grim dark “heritage” sites related to modern politics (e.g. Wagah) as well as in the industrial disasters category (Bhopal). This module will help students to know about the status of dark tourism in India and potential historical places for dark tourism in India and initiatives to promote dark tourism in India.
3. Dark tourism in India
In India, tourism is considered as a very fast growing industry in the world, which also gives its contribution in the economy of the countries from and to, the tourists travel. India is a tourist paradise because of its rich heritage, religious spots, museums, snow-capped mountains and joyous festivals. Tourists travel with the excitement of exploring a new place and for recreation, adventure, religious and educational purposes. Although, there are many influences that make tourists travel from one place to other. These influences are seen as “Motivators”. Motivators can be Physical, Interpersonal, Prestige type, Educational and Cultural, relating to Relaxation, meeting new people, personal esteem and learning about lifestyles at different locations, respectively. Basically, tourism is of Domestic, Outbound and
Inbound forms and is of various types. Some of the types are Cultural Tourism, Religious Tourism, Dark Tourism, Adventure Tourism, Beach Tourism, Business Tourism etc. There is no doubt that a person is influenced by social and cultural activities or happenings. A tourist may get persuaded and one’s perception of travelling may relate to one’s perception of the World. However, there are so many things or people, from whom a traveler gets carried away and these inspirations work as motivators to travel a particular place. The environment and other activities make a person what he is. Not even two persons have the same psychological acceptance to something or someone. In other words, a person’s demand depends upon the type of behavior and intellect that one carries. But, what does it make people to travel. No matter whether from the internal voice or the external influence, a person may feel deprived when his actual stage is different from his desired stage. This arises in a person the feeling of getting a need fulfilled, so as to reach his desired stage. Similarly, a person who wants to have experience or entertainment instead, would try to find a particular place to complete his wish. A spot that sounds attractive or appealing attracts tourists from different places. It’s the individual requirement of a tourist that where he wishes to go to for entertainment, recreation, holiday, business etc. The person fond of exploring the unexplored may be interested in knowing about what happened to the victims of a non-happening or at haunted places, by visiting that place and exploring it. These are those places on the globe that relate to death, atrocity, disaster, tragedy or destruction having sinister pasts that attract the tourists from different parts of the world and this forms the basis of the term “Dark Tourism”. In other words, people travelling to various spots having dark history, is termed as “Dark Tourism” or “Grief Tourism”.
Places for dark tourism in India: Almost every type of tourism exists in India because of this diversity of cultures, festivals, religions etc. The existence of Dark Tourism in India is not much known, but there are many spots in India that fit under the category of “Dark Tourism”. Some of them are:
(i) “Bhangarh Fort” in the state of Rajasthan, built by Man Singh, is haunted place in the India as it is considered to be cursed by a magician. Going to this place after sunset is strictly prohibited.
(ii) “Kuldhara” is a place, again in Rajasthan where it is said that 83 villages lost their existence in just one night. This place is considered to be cursed by the villagers and there’s no one living there right now.
(iii) On 13th April, 1919 many people gathered at “The Jallianwala Bagh” in Amritsar as it was the day of “Baisakhi”, the main Sikh festival. On getting the information that crowd is supposed to gather in the garden, the British Dyer ordered to shoot the people till the ammunition supply ended. The shooting continued for about ten minutes and the whole ground was covered with the blood of people. Today, it is seen as a memorial of those who sacrificed their lives.
(iv) “Dumas Beach, Surat (Gujarat), is the beach covered with black sand and various paranormal activities have been observed here. It is believed that the persons walking around the beach at night have been disappeared. This is also considered as a dark Spot in India.
(v) “Three Kings Church” in Goa, India is also famous for its paranormal activities. It is believed that three kings killed each other so as to rule over the property of this church and people believe that the spirits of these kings roam about in the Premises.
(vi) “Mussoorie” being a famous recreational destination for Tourists, is also a place where Dark Tourism exists. “The Lambi Dehar Mines” in Mussoorie are spookiest place in India. Millions of workers died in the mine while working. Unusual deaths and activities have also been observed at this place.
(vii) “Savoy Hotel” at Mussoorie is yet again a haunted place in India. Various unusual activities have been observed in this hotel. This beautiful Hill station has various hotels but this hotel makes the visitors to be scary of this place.
(viii) A fishing hamlet, 50KM away from Chennai, is the “Dutch Cemetery” in Pulicat is a historic place as also considered as a “Dark Spot” in India.
(ix) At the “Shaniwarwada Fort” in Pune, there is believed that a prince was unkindly murdered and there have been various supernatural activities experienced by people nearby.
So, because of these situations, this place is considered as a part existence of dark tourism in India.
(x) Hyderabad’s notorious “Ramoji film City” is one of the biggest and famous film cities of India, where there are various hotels and in these hotels, supernatural activities have been observed. Strange marks on the mirror, the leftover food scattered around the room and invisible forces tear one’s clothes are some of the suspicious events that one can observe occasionally. These activities make this place haunted.
4. Potential historical places for dark tourism in India
There are numerous places that may haunt anyone and are serving as potential tourism resource for dark tourism. There is list of some places enumerated as follows: Amritsar (with Jallianwala Bagh). Wagah border crossing point. Delhi (Gandhi Smriti and Nicholson cemetery). Lucknow (The Residency). Bhopal (Former Union Carbide plant, Remember Bhopal Museum, abandoned Taj) etc.
There are numerous places that are considered to be haunted and can serve as resource for dark tourism. a few of them have been enlisted as follows:
1) Bhangarh Fort – Ajabgarh, Alwar, Rajasthan
Bhangarh is one of the scariest, spookiest places and situated near a popular forest. It is approximately 90 Kms. from Jaipur and famous excursion spot near the capital city of Rajasthan. It is prohibited to enter the fort between 5 PM and 7 AM. However, few people especially college boys / girls strand in the fort in order to have glimpse of fort at night and watch out for haunted souls. They make their entries to the fort at night from broken walls and some of the groups do not leave the premises of the fort before 5PM.
Image 4.1: Bhangarh
2) Kuldhara – Rajasthan
Kuldhara village is promoted as haunted / abandoned village overnight centuries ago. The story reveals that the king of Jaisalmer had a liking for the daughter of Village head, who belonged to Brahmin family. They were against the will of the king and decided to vacate the village overnight. Some of the people argue that they have shifted towards Jodhpur. One other reason is extreme drought conditions in village that compelled them to vacate the villages.
Image 4.2: Kuldhara
3) D’Souza Chawl in Mahim – Mumbai
The chawl in Mumbai is considered haunted and believed that a woman fell into water and no one saved her.
Image 4.3: D’Souza chaul
Local people have witnessed a woman lurking around the well and the nearby area few years back.
4) The Shaniwarwada Fort – Pune
The fort has unique architecture and mysterious story reveals that a young prince was brutally murdered here and his spirit haunts the place.
Image 4.4: Shaniwarwada fort
5) GP Block – Meerut
GP Block in Meerut is defamed for various paranormal activities. Despite being a popular zone, there are a lot of strange sightings.
Image 4.5: GP Block
6) The Vrindavan Society – Thane
Image 4.6: Vrindavan society
7) Dumas Beach, Surat- Gujarat
The beach is known for its dark sand and it is said that one can hear spooky sounds during sunset and at night. Further, it is believed that people disappear who wander to have a close witness of this beach.
Image 4.7: Dumas beach
8) Jatinga – Assam
The place is known for mass suicide of birds between 6:00 PM to 9:30 PM in the months of September and October.
9) Ramoji Film City – Hyderabad
Image 4.8: Ramoji film city
10) Raj Kiran hotel – Lonavla, Maharashtra
The hotel rooms are supposed to produce haunted sounds during nights. The guests also cry out for help but nobody responds at night and rooms with no reality also appear or realized during night time.
Image 4.9: Raj Kiran hotel
11) Sanjay Van (Near Qutab Institutional Area) – New Delhi
Lady dressed in a white saree appears and disappears suddenly around the cremation ground.
Image 4.10: Sanjay van
12) Dow Hill in Kurseong – Darjeeling
The Dow Hill Boarding School in Kurseong of Darjeeling for Girls is known for spooky and ghost sighting activities.
Image 4.11: Dow hill
13) The Brij Raj Bhavan Palace in Kota – Rajasthan
Image 4.12: Brij Raj bhawan palace
14) Agrasen ki Baoli, Hailey Road, New Delhi
Image 4.13: Agrasen ki baoli
15) Bengal Swamps – West Bengal (Aleya Ghost Lights)
Image 4.14: Bengal swamps
16) Fernhill Hotel, Ooty
Frenhill Hotel is now shut down after re-occurrence of haunting events, gained much name after spooky incidents during the shooting of movie Raaz.
Image 4.15: Fernhill hotel
17) Mukesh Mills
The mill was shut down in 1980 after a sudden fire outbreak and it serves as an excellent location for shooting different haunted movies.
Image 4.16: Mukesh mills
18) National Library Kolkata
Besides rich collection of books, The National Library, Kolkata is also known for its ghost stories. At the time of its renovation twelve labourers died.
Image 4.17: National library, Kolkata
19) Sanjay Gandhi National Park, Mumbai
Image 4.18: Sanjay Gandhi national park
20) South Park Cemetery, Kolkata
It is built in the year 1767.
Image 4.19: South Park cemetery
21) Writers building, Kolkata
Image 4.20: South Park cemetery
22) Bombay Supreme Court
A tortured, vengeful soul is believed to haunt every unknown entity in the corridor restricting their entry. This happened since last 30 years whenever a murder trial is taking place.
Image 4.21: Bombay supreme court
23) Delhi Cantonment Area
Image 4.22: Delhi cantonment area
24) Tower of Silence, Mumbai
It is actually a Parsi cemetry situated near the Malabar Hills. Parsi’s have the ritual of leaving the bodies of their dead on the roof top of a tower to be fed by the vultures. Even the imagination of those scenes would bring shivers to your body. It is also believed that the paranormal incidents occurring in Grand Pararri Towers in Mumbai happens due to the spectral forces emanating from this cemetery.
Image 4.23: Tower of silence
25) Malcha Mahal, New Delhi
The paranormal activities of Malcha Mahal are famous among the most haunted stories in the city of Delhi. The palace is situated in the forest area behind Buddha Garden. Reporters, forest officers or locals, all keep a fair distance and think twice before entering the premises. The warning related to the hound dogs and trespassers being gunned down (since the government gave the authority to shoot down anyone who proves to be a treat to the property) also scares people off this ground.
Image 4.24: Malcha mahal
26) Three Kings Church, Goa
It is famous for its paranormal activities experience by many locals and also by the GRIP team of Indian Paranormal Society. It is believed that the spirits of three kings (who fought over the property of this church and eventually killed each other) roam around in the premises.
Image 4.25: Three kings church
27) The Lambi Dehar Mines, Mussoorie
It is considered as one of the most haunted places in India. The mines were shut after half a million workers died coughing blood due to improper mining conditions. Locals believe that the place has turned into a home for a witch who walks down the hills at night and has claimed many lives. Rapid occurrences of accidents and unusual deaths have also made this place rank amongst the spookiest places in the country.
Image 4.26: Lambi Dehar mines
28) Kalpalli Cemetery, Bangalore
This place has a tragic and violent past. The place belonged to the Vas family and was occupied by Doice Vas and Vera Vas, the two daughters of the renowned lawyer, Mr Vas. On day in 2001, Doice was stabbed to death in her own home by an unknown assailant. She was later buried there as well and Vera moved out after some time. The place is in ruins and has been haunted ever since and the spirit of Doice is supoosed to still linger in the hallways. Multiple teams scouting for paranormal activities have confirmed the presence of negative energy and disturbances.
Image 4.27: Vas villa
29) Savoy Hotel, Mussoorie
The beautiful little hill-station of Mussoorie has it’s fair share of local legends, but ghost of Lady Garnet Orme takes the cake. She was found dead in one of the rooms of the Savoy hotel under mysterious circumstances and is supposed to haunt it ever since. Some say that she was poisoned and strychnine was discovered in one of her medicine bottles. The incident created quite a sensation and Agatha Christie’s best-seller ‘The Mysterious Affair at Styles’ is supposedly based on this. Such a rich history ensures that it always finds a mention in the list of most haunted destinations of India. Hotel attendants and guests often complain of a lady in white walking the hallways and strange noises and disturbances coming from the room where she was murdered.
Image 4.28: Savoy hotel
30) Khairatabad Science College, Hyderabad
There is an old inconspicuous Tarapuri Building, just off the Khairatabad flyover which used to be a science college. The building fell to ruin and was abandoned, but the dead bodies in the biology labs were not disposed of properly. People who pass by at night have often sighted walking skeletons, sparks and disturbing noises. A guard was stationed there by the Government but he died mysteriously, adding to the scariness of the place. Locals avoid this place and believe it to be one of the most haunted in the country.
Image 4.29: Khairatabad Science College
31) Tunnel 33, Shimla
Image 4.30: Tunnel 33
5. Initiatives to promote dark tourism in India
There are numerous initiatives that can be taken to ensure the growth of dark tourism in India. However, a few of them have been enumerated as follows: 1) Identification of various places that can act as potential resource for dark tourism across different states. 2) Development of literature covering those sites. 3) Preparation of tour packages to dark tourism sites. 4) Designing of tour itineraries catering dark sites. 5) Installation of warning and do’s and don’ts at different dark sites. 6) Marketing and promotion of different dark tourism sites through both print and electronic media.
6. Summary After reading this module, the students might have been familiar with dark tourism in India. There are numerous places that can serve as dark tourism sites if identified and promoted. Besides historical places there are some of the mysterious places that are supposed to haunt. Such places can also serve as dark tourism sites. The students must also have known about different initiatives that can be adopted to promote dark tourism in India.