1968, a John Lennon love story: Beatles Ashram in Rishikesh set for a makeover

Lennon’s fledgling emotion story, 1 of the galore priceless nuggets from the Beatles’ India enactment successful 1968, volition present travel to beingness arsenic the Uttarakhand authorities plans to renovate the ashram. It hopes to crook the 17-acre abstraction – with a drawstring of concrete, double-storey hobbit houses, pathways overrun by weeds and deserted buildings – into an ‘International Heritage Tourism destination’.

The Beatles during their enactment astatine the ashram successful 1968.

Standing connected the banks of the Ganga, the ashram is present a abstraction frozen successful time. Under gangly trees and amid patches of chaotic canna plants are the buildings and meditation centres of Mahesh Yogi’s Chaurasi Kutiya, which aft the Beatles’ 1968 enactment became fashionable arsenic the Beatles Ashram. The iconic British set spent astir a period here, meditating and penning astatine slightest 30 songs, including those from The Beatles (White Album) released aboriginal that year.

For the Ahmedabad-based HCP Design, Planning & Management Pvt Ltd, which is executing the renovation project, this is the 2nd ashram task aft the Gandhi Ashram Redevelopment Project successful Gujarat. Helmed by designer Bimal Patel, the steadfast has handled respective high-profile projects, including Central Vista and the caller Parliament gathering successful Delhi, and the Kashi Vishwanath corridor task successful Uttar Pradesh.

According to Anand Patel, task caput astatine HCPDPM, “The task is expected to commence by the extremity of 2024. It volition instrumentality astir 18 months to beryllium completed astatine an estimated outgo of Rs 90 crore.”

Inside the ashram

Part of the Rajaji Tiger Reserve, connected the eastbound banks of the Ganga, the ashram was acceptable up by Mahesh Yogi successful 1963, with his Transcendental Meditation Teacher Training Course attracting participants from astir the world. He is known to person built it with a USD 100,000 assistance from American heiress Doris Duke.

The assemblage with photos of the Beatles taken by Paul Saltzman, a Canadian filmmaker and tv producer, astatine Chaurasi Kutiya. (Express photograph by Leena Misra)

Among the astir celebrated visitors to the ashram were the Beatles, who were past famously embarking connected a travel from psychedelia to transcendence. In February 1968, John Lennon, George Harrison, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr arrived astatine the Rishikesh ashram accompanied by their wives and their manager. Here, they wrote immoderate of their astir fashionable songs, including ‘Back successful the USSR’, ‘Dear Prudence’, ‘Julia’ and ‘The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill’.

Constructed successful 1976 astatine Chaurasi Kutiya successful Rishikesh, Ved Bhavan was utilized arsenic a lecture hallway and to behaviour classes.

Chaurasi Kutiya gets its sanction from the 84 meditation rooms – 42 each connected either broadside of a yoga centre. The analyzable has astir 25 buildings, astir of which are successful a dilapidated state, including the sprawling bungalow that Mahesh Yogi lived successful portion astatine the ashram. Though it’s unclear erstwhile helium near the ashram, the spiritual guru died years later, successful 2005, successful the Netherlands.

Among the fewer buildings that are comparatively untouched by clip are the unsocial pyramid-shaped Anand Bhavan and Siddhi Bhavan, built successful 1976, which served arsenic residences for those grooming to beryllium teachers of Transcendental Meditation.

Inside the ashram, the communicative of the Beatles is told done a assemblage with implicit 20 photographs taken by Paul Saltzman, a Canadian filmmaker and tv shaper who chronicled the Beatles’ stay.

A striking diagnostic of the ashram is the bid of factual huts, which served arsenic meditation caves for “sanyasis and brahmacharis”. The walls of the 121 huts, built successful 1976-78, are embedded with circular pebbles sourced from the stream banks. Each of these huts person a narrow, winding stairway that leads to the level above. As per the renovation plan, astatine slightest 20 of these huts volition beryllium refurbished for radical to usage arsenic meditation spaces.

Keeping a bequest alive

It was successful 1961 that onshore for the ashram was leased to Mahesh Yogi by the past Uttar Pradesh government. After the 20-year lease expired successful 1981, the spot was taken implicit by the authorities government. While the ashram remained abandoned, its Beatles transportation continued to gully visitors.

In 2015, the Uttarakhand wood section took implicit the ashram, which is the lone portion of the Rajaji Tiger Reserve that is unfastened done the year. That year, the ashram reported 20,000 visitors, which spiked to 35,000 successful 2018 erstwhile Paul McCartney came to observe 50 years of the Beatles’ sojourn to Rishikesh. The ashram saw much tourists successful June 2023, erstwhile the Uttarakhand government, which had hosted a three-day Infrastructure Working Group (IWG) gathering successful Rishikesh arsenic portion of the G20 summit, took the delegates to the ashram. That year, the fig of visitors roseate to 45,000.

The printing property astatine Chaurasi Kutiya. (Express photograph by Leena Misra)

A imaginativeness papers for the redevelopment has been readied and is present with the Public Works Department (PWD) of the Uttarakhand authorities for vetting, a authorities authorities authoritative told The Indian Express.

Uttarakhand Forest Minister Subodh Uniyal said not overmuch of what is wrong the ashram volition beryllium disturbed. “The program is to support it successful as-is condition. The thought is to sphere the bequest of the Beatles,” helium said.

Though the task is being undertaken by the authorities tourism department, the country falls successful the jurisdiction of the wood section arsenic it is portion of the reserve wood that is simply a situation for tigers and elephants, among different protected species.

Conservator of Forests & Director of Rajaji Tiger Reserve, Koko Rose, told The Indian Express, “Around 9-13 buildings volition beryllium refurbished – the Maharshi’s bungalow, the gathering wherever the Beatles stayed, the Vedic kitchen. There volition beryllium nary caller operation and nary razing. The thought is to heighten the tourer experience. Being a wood area, cipher volition beryllium allowed to enactment overnight, play large euphony oregon bash thing that could disturb the wildlife.”

Anand Bhavan served arsenic the residence for those grooming to beryllium transcendental meditation teachers. (Express photograph by Leena Misra)

The kitchen, which whipped up meals for immoderate 500 radical erstwhile the ashram was astatine its peak, is among the spaces that are being renovated.

HCP’s Anand Patel said the centre would beryllium unfastened to visitors lone during daylight hours and volition beryllium a “low-impact tourism destination”.

“A cafeteria, a depository store and medication bureau volition beryllium housed successful the renovated buildings. The different buildings volition person exhibitions connected the Maharishi, Beatles and the Rajaji National Park. We program to repair and reconstruct 12 of the 25 buildings connected the site. All the remaining buildings volition beryllium near arsenic they are to service arsenic a representation of the clip gone by,” helium said.