Is VARANASI worth visiting as a tourist place ? Ghats, Ganga Aarti, Street Food & More

Banaras, Banahua, Ras Bae Hari Raso Ka Ras Ba Iho Banaras Jai Ke Jai Ke Aave Ke Hoi Banas Ba Banahua Kashi, Banaras or Varanasi The name is different, but the story is of the same city, which is older than history. In Hindu mythology, it is believed that this is the place that existed before the beginning of the world and will probably exist even after the end of the world. And there is one voice in the city that carries Banaras in its heart. He is called the voice of Varanasi, Bhoomi Nishad. His name is Bhoomi, he lives on the Nishad Ghat, and is often seen on the lap of Ganga Maiya, playing the chappu and singing. Mahal Tari Yehi Ke Yehi Reh Jai Hai Insaan Ache Kaam Karte Jaye Phal Dega Bhagwan Re Yeh Maya Ka Nagri Hai Japat Hari Ka Naam Jap Nahin Toh Jap Neh Reh Bande Reh Reh Naam Hari Ka Gradually, you start forgetting. Starting from one ghat in the morning, there are so many different emotions along the way. If you look at the same place, you will see that the devotees of the temple here are doing aarti. In the same frame, you will see tourists taking selfies, taking photos. If you go a little further, there are two ghats, one is Harishchandra Ghat and the other is Manikarnika Ghat. People from all over the world come here for the final rituals. The corpses are cremated here. There are many different emotions, but this is Banaras in the morning. For some, it is a morning walk, for some it is a final goodbye, for some it is the beginning of the day, for some it is the end of life. One thing that I don't like is these motor boats. We can hear the sound of water, birds, and chants from here and there. And behind me, there is a noise. I don't know. Government, administration, everyone has their own reasons, but somehow I don't understand. The energy of this place, I have to shout so loudly. The significance of this place, the energy, the ambience, it kills everything. Anyway, in the morning, I think it's worth waking up early. As the day progresses, the crowd will also increase, but I think the morning of Banaras should start like this. After my first morning in Banaras, Bhoomi ji took me to my first taste of Banaras. And while passing through the streets near this Ghat, we reached Banaras' popular breakfast, Kachori Sabzi Khane. Puri is plain. Plain. Kachori is filled with spices. So, what's in this? Dal? Yes, dal. You will know the taste when you eat it. Okay. Plain kachori and stuffed kachori, you will know the taste. Okay. See, that is pithi. Yes. And dal is pithi. Okay, this is pithi. Yes, that is also filled in kachori. Okay. So, this is Banarasi breakfast. Very stereotypical, quintessential Banarasi breakfast. So, what we generally call as Puri or Bedmi Puri or Bharma Puri, here in Banaras, it is called Kachori. And this is the breakfast that you will find in every street or alley. There are some places which are really popular. There are some which are basically just locals' hideouts. So, as soon as we got down from the boat, Bhumi ji told us that he will take us there. And our first Banarasi meal has started on a typical Banarasi note. And even though it is a little spicy for me, but I think that's how Banarsis like it. And in Banaras, do as the Banarsis do. But I think even though it is spicy, there is a solution to that as well. Because they have jalebi. So, let's eat jalebi with this. Brother, please give me jalebi. Yes, now this is a good way to balance it. And even though some people might find this to be a very weird taste, but I think jalebi and sabzi, spicy sabzi, balanced by the sweetness and the crispiness of jalebi. I think this is how I prefer it. Banaras has two sides. One is the soul of Banaras, i.e. the river Ganga and the 80-90 ghats here. And the other is the heart of Banaras, i.e. the bazaar here. I have to admit that Varanasi is one of the most overwhelming cities in India and probably in the whole world. The crowd here, the congestion, the traffic and the horns of cars, this was enough to give me a panic attack. So, for my own good, I decided to explore this chaotic city with a local. Shwetank aka Monu has spent his entire life in this city. And now he runs a local tours and walks company and shows his city to people with great enthusiasm. When I was a kid, around 7-8 years old, I used to eat idli here. And at that time, we used to take one idli and drink sambar 10 times. So, I have been seeing this shop since then. But in the last 24 hours, I have seen that in general, idli, dosa, vada, its culture, I had not thought that there would be so much of it in Kashi. This influence has come from the south. So, our south Indian tourists or our kings and emperors have brought their food with them. So, in British times, there was a time when Marathas, between 17th to 19th century, all the Marathas who came here, they had this culture. South Indian dosa, idli and all this food. And there is a lot of influence of south Indian tourists. Yes, there is a lot. So, the main source here is tourism. So, tourism means that if a person does not have a job, he opens his own idli shop and sets up a counter. Now, in Banaras, even though you get South Indian food in so many places, but I came here only for Banarasi food. And for this, our first stop was Kashi Chaat Bhanda. I have been hearing about tomato chaat for so long. So, I was wondering what all can be made with tomato chaat. Is there potato in it? Yes, there is potato and peas. They add chickpeas to it for the combination. Look, I don't have many options to compare. Absolutely. So, this is my first experience. And for me, this is a little sweet and sour potato-tomato curry. Curry? Yes. But what happens in curry is that the potatoes are thick. This is nicely mashed. And there is a slight sweetness of tomatoes. No, there is a sweet chutney in it. Sweet chutney. I have been hearing about tomato chaat for so long and I always used to wonder. I have never googled how it is made, what it looks like. But, yes, the flavours are definitely there. I am sorry if I have offended anyone by saying that this is like a vegetable. Because the way it is made, truth be told, it has potatoes, tomatoes and peas. So, at the end of the day, it is a vegetable. But, where it is completely mashed and there is a slight sweetness and sourness in it. So, normally, what they do is that they have the tomato gravy ready. So, they mix it. They take it out. After that, they add chutney and curd to their gravy. But, this is true. This is the third thing that we have eaten in Banaras since yesterday. It is spicy. I have definitely noticed this in everything so far. But, it is also tasty. After these spicy Banarasi dishes, my tongue and my stomach wanted a little relief. So, Shwetank took me to the oldest sweet shop in Banaras. They have been making sweets for the people here since 1887. Which sweets are generally popular in Banaras? Mostly, you get sweets everywhere. But, Malai ki Lodi is popular everywhere. And Rajbhog. Rajbhog is also famous. Brother, one Malai ki Lodi please. This reaction of mine comes out in very few things. This is definitely one of those things. Simply, if you have to define it, it feels like you take the whole cushion of Malai, take the pillow of Malai and it is filled with filling. There is a lot of dry fruit inside. What I can see, I think, is pistachio and almonds. But, what is this green thing with it? Is it a layer of pistachio? Yes, it is a layer of pistachio. In many episodes, I eat two spoons and then share the rest with Shiv. But, I am not sharing this with Shiv. This is my entire meal. It is said that the real picture of these small cities can be seen in the small streets here. But, apart from getting lost in these streets, I had also come to get something. That is a little less crowd and a little more peace. And because of being with Shwetan, we also got to learn a bit about the history and the culture of the place. Okay, this is the Ravi Classical Music Center. So, the hippies who have come as backpackers, they are very interested in Indian classical music. So, they travel all over India and come here to learn. So, Pandit Ravi Shankar ji's teacher, George Harrison, was also born in Kashi. And he himself made Indian classical music very popular in the West. But, if I am not wrong, there is also a classical music gharana in Banaras. Yes, there is a gharana in Banaras. So, the biggest gharana from tabla is here in Banaras. And it is called Banaras gharana. So, Pandit Kanthe Maharaj ji, Gudai Maharaj ji and Anokhilal Mishra ji, they were born here and invented their gharana here. So, Delhi, Lucknow, Farooqabad, Ajrara, Punjab and Banaras. These are the six gharanas related to tabla. And there is one in Banaras. Passing through these winding streets, we went to a lassi shop, which may be small in size, but its stories are very big. Here, try this mixed fruit. So, the name is blue lassi. Yes. It is completely blue. Absolutely. And which one did you order? Mixed fruit. It has pomegranate, papaya, guava, gulkand, and curd. First of all, this is not a drinkable lassi. This is a drinkable lassi. Because it is thick and there is so much fruit on top. The fruit is not just sprinkled on top. No, it is not like that. It has a layer of fruit on top. I think this lassi is the first mocktail of India. Yes. But this is a complete dessert in itself. Yes, it is a dessert. Forget dessert, it is a complete meal. If you finish this, you are set for half a day. Whether it is to digest the food of Benaras or to make yourself a little more Benarasi. There is only one cure for all these ailments. Benarasi Paan. So, what is Benarasi? This is a Magai leaf. It is very light. After eating it, it melts like water. And these green leaves, you keep chewing them in your mouth. They don't finish in 15-20 minutes. This is strong. It is not like your normal sweet paan with chocolate and cherries on top. No, this is a real paan. This is a real paan. And it hits you. It actually hits you. Kul ka Deepak Mukh hai. Jagat ka Deepak Deep hai. Surya Bhagwan. Kul ka Deepak Putra hai. Mukh ka Deepak Paan hai. Yeh bhi Deepak hai. The city of Benaras is full of contrast. Along with tourists, pilgrims and street food, it has one more side which makes it quite unlike any other place in the world. This is the oldest cremation site of Kashi. People say that in Kashi, one attains salvation by sacrificing one's life. I will tell you how it happens. This place is of Lord Shiva. Lord Shiva is the doer, bearer and bearer of everything. Though Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh have been divided, but Lord Shiva has taken all the responsibilities. So here it is said that between Varuna and Asi, in Kashi or Kedarkhand or any other holy place, when someone sacrifices his life, Lord Shiva chants the Tarak mantra in his ear. 200 dead bodies are cremated here every day. There are two ghats here, one is Manikarnika and the other is Harishchandra. Manikarnika, Rani Lakshmibai ji's name is Manikarnika. Manikarnika means that the earring of Parvati ji, the earring of Manikarnika is lost here. So in the Puranas, it is believed that this is the Manikarnika ghat, because the incident took place here. Similarly, people bring wood from their boats for cremation. In Kashi, Gaya and Banaras, there are two such places where people come to do Pindadan. And if you don't do Pindadan in Kashi and Gaya, then the soul doesn't die according to Hinduism. Most people come to Varanasi to see the evening Ganga Aarti, which is held every day at around 6-6.30 pm at Dashashwamedh Ghat. Even though it is held at many other ghats, the craze here is that the entire ghat is filled from 5 pm. And this is one experience that I was really looking forward to. Hail Mother Laxmi! Hail Mother India! This first day experience in Banaras was very overwhelming for me. Every corner, every street, every ghat and every bazaar here is no less than a sensory overload. The irony here is that while it is usually called the spiritual capital, there is one expectation of peace, quiet and serenity. But what you see in front of you is the exact opposite of that. But it will be a little early to make any opinion about this place in such a short time. And anyway, there is still a little bit of Subah-e-Banaras, Shyam-e-Banaras and Swad-e-Banaras left. Kachori, biraja, malai, marke! Bihar Raja, Har Har Mahadev! See, I am making so much noise. And people used to come here to hear abuses. First abuses, then kachori. So, some people even liked it. Ghee in the front, curd in the back. All the work is done.