This Is Where The Beatles Stayed In Uttarakhand, And Now It's In Ruins: The Decaying Story Of '84 Kutia'

They arrived at India바카라�s 바카라�spiritual capital바카라�, Rishikesh, 54 years ago. The Beatles went on to explore India바카라�s rich spiritual heritage, passionately practising meditation in a perfect Himalayan setting바카라�a deep forest on a small hillock on the eastern banks of the Ganges. 

They played their guitars, wrote 48 iconic songs and sent countless postcards to their overseas friends. Their presence put India on the top of the world tourism map. 

At least one of them바카라�John Lennon바카라�gave the finishing touches to his romance, with the Japanese multimedia artist Yoko Ono.  

They wore Indian clothes, while the women accompanying them, including Cynthia Lennon, John바카라�s first wife, donned saris and bindis all through their stay at the sprawling 14-acre ashram of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi바카라�known worldwide for his movement called Transcendental Meditation. They ate vegetarian food and sat for long meditation sessions. Yogi is said to have invited the band to change the West바카라�s attitude toward Indian spirituality and his Transcendental Meditation. 

The event caught global media attention as Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and Starr arrived in February 1968 at the Maharishi바카라�s ashram. Many recall that Rishikesh was little more than a village then, with a population of 20,000 or 30,000, which has now bloated up into an overgrown township. 

바카라�Chaurasi Kutiya바카라� (84 caves)바카라�the bungalow where the Beatles stayed inside the erstwhile ashram, now part of Rajaji National Tiger Reserve바카라�is in ruins, decayed by time. Most of the landmark buildings, living spaces, and meditation caves바카라�igloo-shaped enclosures, built using sand and stones lugged from the Ganga바카라�s banks바카라�have crumbled. Shrubs, bushes and uprooted/fallen trees have overrun the complex바카라�a sign of neglect and poor upkeep. 

Recently, when award-winning British photographer Michael Donald exhibited his photographs during a trip to Rishikesh, in which he captured the Beatles bungalow in its utter neglect, the legacy of the Beatles returned to haunt the town. Donald was on his first visit to Rishikesh when he came to know of the Beatles bungalow. 

The splendour of the buildings, which were once a hub of activity, music and spiritual teachings, is now bereft of doors, windows and fittings. Few have signages on the large awnings, declaring them to be unsafe. 

Admits Dehradun-based journalist Raju Gusain, 바카라�Neither the UP government nor its heir, the Uttarakhand government, ever made any attempt to save this heritage. It바카라�s in complete neglect. Right now, it바카라�s looked after by the forest department but it has no plans for its conservation.바카라� 
 

Gusain, whose curiosity about the Beatles바카라� stay at Rishikesh took him all the way to England, has a treasure trove of trivia. It has led many top filmmakers, like two-time Emmy Award-winning Canadian Paul Saltzman, to him and the Beatles바카라� stay at the ashram. 

바카라�Many people may not be aware that Cynthia Lennon바카라�s arrival and her stay with John Lennon at the bungalow were aimed at saving her marriage. Evidently, she failed. After initially sharing a room with John, she shifted to a separate room,바카라� Gusain claims. 

Meanwhile, John바카라�s love story with Yoko Ono blossomed. He used to write letters to her, mainly postcards, almost regularly. He also kept receiving her responses. 
 

The post office, another landmark building at the ashram, is witness to their story. 

Being allergic to most of the food served at the ashram, Ringo Starr left early, while other members stayed over for 5-8 weeks. 

There is an interesting twist to their stay at the bungalow, especially when Prudence Farrow, actress Mia Farrow바카라�s sister, arrived. She used to do long meditation sessions that lasted for hours, in complete seclusion. The famous Beatles song, Dear Prudence, was dedicated to her. It was written by John Lennon to coax her out of her seclusion. 

Some other songs written at the meditation centre include Let it go, as well as much of the albums White Album and Yellow Submarine. 

It was due to the effort of Gusain, along with Paul Saltzman, Tony Ellis, Raja Richard Ross, Anand Shrivastava and Laxman Shrivastava, that a photo gallery based on the Beatles바카라� stay was set up in 2018, during the 50^th year of their arrival at the ashram.  

바카라�There are 22 photographs, all of the rare value, on display at the galley. The building where the galley is located was restored to its original form to give a decent look and is now visited by tourists, mostly foreigners, every day,바카라� Gusain says. But many other iconic buildings are on the verge of collapse. 

The Beatles, during one of their trips to Dehradun, also visited the music store Pratap Music House, and befriend its owner (late), Ajit Singh, a fine Vichitra Veena player, whom they invited to their home for a musical retreat, recalls his sister Brijpal Aneja, who now looks after the store. 

The most fascinating places in the entire complex are 84 Kutiya and an adjacent hall. Half of the latter is underground and contains private mediation caves made of small stones and concrete. 

The bungalow with seven rooms where the Fab Four stayed used to have running water, electricity and proper ventilation, though they reportedly used to take daily dips in the Ganga. 

At the Artist바카라�s Studio, one can see paint peeling off, broken cement patches and fading life-size graffiti of the band members with the Maharishi, amidst broken windows, doors and a cracked roof. Brightly coloured murals on the walls are partially disfigured. The printing press, where Maharishi used to get all his publications printed, has disappeared. A bathroom at the Beatles바카라� bungalow with a ceramic bathtub, is abandoned. Maharishi바카라�s own bungalow and the Dnyanpeeth are also in ruins. 

Rajender Nautiyal, the forest officer who was instrumental in getting the 84 Kutia opened to the public in December 2015, says, 바카라�A great deal of effort had been put in to save the world heritage site.바카라�  

The ashram바카라�s lease expired in 1981. In 2003, the complex came under the jurisdiction of Rajaji National Park. 바카라�After the lease expired and it got notified within the tiger reserve, the forest department shut down its gates, refused entry to visitors but took no steps to preserve the land, buildings artefacts and assets. Anyone could sneak into the place from nearby villages and take away whatever they found. From doors and windows, even valuable furniture and rare photographs and books were stolen,바카라� he recalls. No one bothered to stop the loot and destruction.  
 

"Serving as a Forest Range Officer, it was painful to see the relics disappearing," says Nautiyal. Most international celebrities, filmmakers, foreign dignitaries and people associated with the band used to come searching for the place, but returned disappointed, he adds. 

바카라�I somehow motivated them to write emails to the government, asking it to intervene and save the legacy. Finally, the Uttarakhand government decided in 2015 to open the bungalow to the public. I involved several foreign writers and filmmakers to write and erect proper signages for each building, for the benefit of visitors,바카라� he recalls. 

Nautiyal, having already been posted out to Tehri, wonders if any further effort has been made to take things forward from where he had left. 

The opening of the bungalow became a huge event, attracting media attention the world over.  

During the Beatles바카라� stay over, a tiger was shot within the ashram, an act the band members totally disapproved of. The incident inspired their song 바카라�Continuing story of bungalow bill바카라�, Nautiyal claims. 

Uttarakhand tourism minister Satpal Maharaj tells Outlook that he has written a letter to PM Modi, seeking his attention for promoting 바카라�84 Kutia바카라� as a world heritage site. 바카라�Within the government, I바카라�ve discussed the issue with forest minister Subodh Uniyal, for working out a plan to develop it as a tourist destination, apart from undertaking necessary preservation works,바카라� he says. 

Forest officials claim the department earns around Rs 1 crore a year from the entry fee. Foreigners are required to pay a higher Rs 600 per person compared to Rs 150 for Indians.