There is a ghat in Varanasi where women are asked to step aside for the men.
The priest does not look up when he says it. It is not hostile. It is just the accumulated weight of a tradition that decided, at some point, that women's grief was less important than men's ritual.
This piece is not about that priest. It is about the women who are there anyway.
The widows of Vrindavan who sing at 4 AM. The devadasis of Puri who are the only people authorized to touch the Jagannath idol. The women at Kamakhya in Assam, where the entire temple is built around the celebration of the female body.
India's sacred landscape is not anti-women. It is complicated about women in a way that requires a guide who understands both the exclusions and the inclusions.
This is why SATVIKS started building women-only travel groups — because in that configuration, the guide can take you to places and conversations that are simply not available otherwise.
We are also building SATVIKS to be women-first in its hiring. Every city has at least one trained female guide. Our audio guide safety notes are written by women who actually live in these cities.
The goal is not to make India smaller. The goal is to make its full size available to everyone.
Ready to experience India differently?