In this Newari festival unique to Bhaktapur, locals spend the afternoon building effigies of the demon Ghantakarna to beat and burn at dusk. “Ghantakarna means “bell ears” says Punya, a Bhaktapur local. “He is a legendary demon who did not want to hear the word of god, and so hung bells on his ears to drown out the sound of prayer and the name of god.” Th burning and destruction fo the straw effigies symbolize the destruction of evil.
The festival takes place after all the rice is planted and people have a moment of rest and revival before the Autumn harvest and festival season arrive.
Wandering around the city, the streets reminded me of a mass block party, with children running around with bamboo fronts, and neighbors chatting on stoops.
The men are mainly in charge of the demon construction, including decoration with colorful facemasks, and phallic attachments. On this day, children are permitted to curse, and giddy chants of various slang words ring through the streets, while some women seem slightly embarrassed and averted their eyes.
As night arrives, we follow effigies as they are grabbed with gusto by bands of men and dragged to the main square, where they are set on fire and beaten until they burn to the ground.
As the fires die down and smolder, local mothers and fathers swing their children over the flames, and we return home, navigating carefully around piles of smoking ash.