“I was on Durga Puja Festival vacation, travelling on a local train. A boy was singing devotional song and begging for alms. He was guised as a Hindu god, Lord Shiva. This is a common view in Indian trains but this boy was charming, bright and did have a melodious voice. My camera was ready hanging on my neck so I took a picture”. (Photo and caption by Arup Ghosh/2014 Sony World Photography Awards)

An Indian man stands dressed like Hindu god Shiva to attract alms from devotees during the Ambubasi festival at the Kamakhya Hindu temple in Gauhati, India, Sunday, June 22, 2014. The annual festival where hundreds of holy men from an esoteric form of Hinduism, gather to perform rituals at the temple begins on June 22. (Photo by Anupam Nath/AP Photo)

A Hindu holy man, or sadhu, smokes marijuana on a chillum (pipe) at the premises of Pashupatinath Temple during the Shivaratri festival in Kathmandu February 27, 2014. Hindu holy men from Nepal and India come to this temple to take part in the Shivaratri festival. Celebrated by Hindu devotees all over the world, Shivaratri is dedicated to Lord Shiva, and holy men mark the occasion by praying, smoking marijuana or smearing their bodies with ashes. (Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)

Nepalese Hindu women pray to worship Lord Shiva during the first day of the Sarwan Brata festival, the month of fasting, at the premises of Pashupati Temple in Kathmandu, Nepal, 18 July 2016. Thousands of married and single Nepalese Hindu women will gather in temples for each Monday of the Sawan month (spanning from 16 July to 16 August) to pray for a long and prosperous life of their husbands or for a chance to find a good one. (Photo by Narendra Shrestha/EPA)

Hindu devotees perform rituals during the Bol Bom pilgrimage, on the outskirts of Kathmandu, Nepal, Monday, August 8, 2016. During this pilgrimage, devotees walk miles barefooted before offering water collected from Bagmati river, at the Pashupatinath temple in Katmandu. Shravan Somwar or Monday of Hindu calendar month of Shravan is considered auspicious for offering prayers to Lord Shiva, the god of destruction. (Photo by Niranjan Shrestha/AP Photo)

An Indian boy dressed as Hindu god Shiva to attract alms from devotees chats with tourists as they sit on benches partially submerged in flood waters on the banks of the River Ganges in Allahabad, India, Thursday, July 30, 2015. The Ganges, one of India's largest rivers is flooded following monsoon rains. (Photo by Rajesh Kumar Singh/AP Photo)

A Sadhu, Hindu holy person, prepares himself by smearing ashes on his body during the Maha Shivaratri festival at the Pashupati Temple in Kathmandu, Nepal, 11 March 2021. The Maha Shivratri festival, which is celebrated on 11 March, sees Hindu devotees, from across the country and neighboring India, gather to celebrate the birthday of Lord Shiva, the Hindu god of creation and destruction, by offering special prayers and fasting. (Photo by Narendra Shrestha/EPA/EFE)

A group of sadhus (holy men) participate in a religious rally to mark the Mahashivaratri festival at Pashupati Temple in Kathmandu, Nepal, 06 March 2024. The festival celebrated on 08 March, sees Hindu devotees from across the country and neighboring India gather to fast and offer special prayers to celebrate the birthday of Lord Shiva, the Hindu god of creation and destruction. (Photo by Narendra Shrestha/EPA/EFE)