A country as steeped in spirituality, lore and mysticism as India is has its fair share of haunted stories and boy does it not disappoint! In fact you can hardly go to a city town or village without hearing about some friend of a friend who had a terrifying experience with a ghostly aberration that told them to go the other way… which would have sent them to their deaths! Haunted places have always fascinated me as I have a lifelong interest in the paranormal. I am also sure that I am not alone in my likings either, after all who doesn’t enjoy a good horror story? Here are my top 5 haunted locations of India:
Bhangarh Fort, Rajasthan Located in the Alwar district of Rajasthan, Bangarh Fort isn’t just the most haunted location in India; it is considered one of the scariest places on Earth! In fact even the skeptical minds at the Archeological Institute of India aren’t very sure about what to make of it, and have even posted a sign at the entrance forbidding anyone to stay at the fort after sunset and before sunrise. Legend has it that a black magician named Scindia fell in love with a local princess. One day he tried to charm her with a potion, however the princess caught his deception and in the ensuing struggle, the magician was killed. With his dying breath he cursed the fort town, saying the place will be destroyed, and no one there will live. His curse materialized shortly after when the Mughals attacked and sacked the fort which left the place decimated and all of its 10,000 inhabitants including the princess dead. Many people have disappeared in the fort’s vicinity and many have claimed to have seen aberrations as well.
Dumas Beach, Gujarat: Beaches don’t quite make it to haunted place listings; however this particular seaside location was once a Hindu burial ground, where countless dead bodies were burned. Dumas beach has earned a reputation for having fierce winds which are loaded with eerie whispers and malevolent sounds. People who have been to the place testify to hearing strange noises and it is often observed that dogs behave very strangely too, running fanatically from one place to the next howling and barking at nothing.
Lambi Dehar Mines, Mussorie, Uttara khand: The Lambi Dehar were quarry mines located at some distance from Mussorie. Once home to over 50,000 persons; many thousands of deaths occurred here due to improper safety precautions lack of good quality air and accidents. The mines and the surrounding colony which housed the workers were abandoned in the 1990s after the frequency of accidents started to increase. People who have been to the place testify to seeing ghostly shapes, hearing weird noises and feeling downright strange standing in the place where so much death took place. Lambi Dehar also has an extremely post-apocalyptic look and feel.
Delhi Cantonment, Delhi: Cantonments often have long colonial histories, having being established way back during the raj, which means that they have a lot to offer as far as paranormal stories go. The military cantonment in Delhi for instance, has one particular case where people driving by see a lady clad in a white dress standing by the road asking for lift, if you ignore her, she is reported to start running after you, and sometimes she reaches the same speed as the vehicle! Paranormal investigators have speculated that she was probably a hitchhiker who met her end there and continues to haunt the place, looking for relief.
Dow Hill, Kurseong, West Bengal: Dow hill in West Bengal is a small town which has earned renown for being one of the most haunted place in India. A series of gruesome murders, which have taken place there are said to be primarily responsible for the ghostly paranormal activities that are reported both by the locals and the tourists. The source of the troubles reportedly is the Victoria Boys High School, where people hear footsteps, even when the school is empty for the December to March Vacation (must be fun studying there). There is also another legend where people have reportedly seen a headless boy running from a road which is now labeled the “death road”. The boy shadows you and then speeds of into the forest nearby. There are also a number of suicide cases being reported from Kurseong, which are carried out for no apparent reason, a worrying trend that has the authorities concerned.
These haunting may be what they are made out to be, or maybe they are simply proof what a powerful effect lore and hearsay can have on the unconscious side of our minds. While the case whether or not life after death is real or made up is up for grabs, locations such as these must have drawn their reputation from some common denominator. What do you think, given an opportunity, will you like to try a haunted place for a night? Leave a comment below and let us know!
Team DainikDisha