These images give a rare insight into the life of a 19th Century Indian Maharajah. Maharajah Ram Singh ruled in the famous pink city of Jaipur between 1835 and 1880, and was also a keen photographer. Here: Full portrait of a woman in the harem in the royal palace of Jaipur, India, 1857 – 1865. (Photo by Maharaja Ram Singh III/Alinari via Getty Images)

Coaches of the North-East Express passenger train that derailed late Wednesday near Raghunathpur railroad station in Buxar district of Bihar state, India, Thursday, October 12, 2023. The train was on its way to Assam state from New Delhi. (Photo by Aftab Alam Siddiqui/AP Photo)

A man rides a bicycle past a mural portraying Bollywood actor Aamir Khan and slogans to encourage people to cast their vote, in Jalandhar on May 10, 2024 ahead of the fourth phase of voting of India's general election. (Photo by Shammi Mehra/AFP Photo)

“Mehndi or menhdi is the application of henna as a temporary form of skin decoration in India, as well as by expatriate communities from the country. The word mehndi is derived from the Sanskrit word mendhikā. The use of mehndi and turmeric is described in the earliest Vedic ritual books. Haldi (Staining oneself with turmeric paste) as well as mehndi are important Vedic customs as a symbolic representation of the Outer and the Inner Sun. Vedic customs are meant to awaken the “inner light” and so the gold of the inner Sun has an important symbolic function”. – Wikipedia

Photo: Application of henna or “Mehndi” to a girls hand in a market on October 18, 2010 in Jaipur, India. (Photo by Simon de Trey-White/Getty Images)

A worker walks through a salt pan on the eve of May Day or Labour Day on the outskirts of the southern Indian city of Chennai April 30, 2014. India is the third largest salt producing country in the world after China and U.S. with global annual production about 230 million tonnes, according to government data. (Photo by Reuters/Babu)

A Rajasthani folk dance artist performs while standing on two glasses during the “Dhora Ri Mahak” festival in Bhopal, India, 07 January 2015. The event is being organised by the “Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya” anthropology museum. (Photo by Sanjeev Gupta/EPA)

Hindu devotees, their bodies pierced with lemon and paladai, or bowl with a spout mainly used to feed milk to infants, wait to participate in a procession to mark Shivratri, or the night of Shiva, in Chennai, India, Wednesday, February 18, 2015. Such processions are held as an offering and show of devotion by devotees on the day dedicated to the worship of Lord Shiva, the Hindu god of destruction. (Photo by Arun Sankar K./AP Photo)

A man holds an idol of Hindu God Ganesha before immersing it in the Bay of Bengal during Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Chennai, India, Sunday, September 20, 2015. The festival marks the birth of Ganesha who is widely worshiped by Hindus as the god of wisdom, prosperity and good fortune. (Photo by Arun Sankar K./AP Photo)