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The Bhimbetka Caves Are Not Too Well Known, But They are Fascinating and Have also Been Declared a World Heritage Site
“Did you know there are 10,000-year-old cave paintings just an hours’ drive from here?” asked my friend in Bhopal. We, of course, shook our head and admitted our ignorance. “The Bhimbetka caves are a World Heritage Site,” he went on to inform us. “But we haven’t read about it in the MP tourism literature,” we protested. For some strange reason, the caves find just a passing reference in the state’s tourism literature which is full of details on places such as Khajuraho, Orchha, Sanchi, Kanha and the like.
So the next morning we drove 55 km from Bhopal on the NH69 and arrived at the Bhimbetka caves in the Raisen district of Madhya Pradesh. A board at the entrance announced that the caves were declared a World Heritage Site in July 2003. We paid our entrance fee of Rs 10 per head and drove up a winding lane with trees, shrubs and rocks on both sides and finally came to the caves themselves.
There was just one more car parked at the entrance, belonging to a couple that had probably come to this isolated place in search of privacy. Well, the lack of crowds definitely proved one thing; we were not the only ones who had never heard about the Bhimbetka caves. As we made our way to the caves, a man came running excitedly up to us. He introduced himself as Vimal Kumar Rai, the official guide at Bhimbetka. Considering that only around four to five tourists visit Bhimbetka daily and Rai earns a paltry Rs 100 per tour, his excitement on seeing us was justified.
There are a total of 750 caves spread over a 10x4 km area. “However, of these only 15 are open for the general public,” Rai informed us. The caves depict paintings belonging to the Paleolithic (10,000 BC), Mesolithic (5,000 BC) and the Chalcolithic (2,000 BC) periods.
The most famous cave is the Zoo Rock where one can see paintings dating back to 10,000 BC made with limestone and also some paintings made between 5,000 years and 7,000 years ago with vegetable colors and iron. The Zoo Rock depicts a variety of animals from horses to elephants and from bulls to antelopes. There is a distinct difference in the paintings made in 10,000 BC and those made in 5,000 BC. It makes one wonder if the animals themselves evolved or was it that man just became a better artist.There are also caves that depict paintings of man’s daily life thousands of years ago. You have paintings showing group dance and others depicting hunting scenes.
Some caves have paintings, which date back to 2,000 BC. Here, man is shown wearing clothes and the weapons are more sophisticated. The paintings too have improved. For instance, while horses were shown as nothing but line sketches in the 10,000 BC paintings, a horse painted in 2,000 BC could give Hussain a run for his money.
The Bhimbetka caves were discovered in 1958 by an archaeologist from Ujjain who saw the rock formations from a distance while crossing this area by train. Later he came back to these caves and on closer inspection discovered the paintings inside the caves. The area was pretty much deserted except for some tribals who lived here and the paintings had been ignored for centuries. Different teams undertook excavation in and around the area from 1958 to 1974 and various skeletons and weapons/tools were found dating back thousands of years. All these are now displayed at various museums including one at Bhopal.
Besides the paintings, which of course, are a wonder, the caves and rock formations themselves are worth marveling at. There is a rock formation that looks like a tortoise and the entrance of a cave, which resembles the open mouth of a snake. Some caves are small while others can accommodate up to a hundred people.
As we drove away from Bhimbetka, having thanked Rai for his guided tour we couldn’t help but feel that these caves were not getting their due recognition as a historical tourist spot. Surely more people would be interested in visiting Bhimbetka. It’s time MP tourism took note and informed people about this fascinating attraction.
The report compares the Indian and global wine markets, and the attempts made by the Indian wine industry to become a global entity. The report also studies consumer trends, the changing perception about wine in the country, and the factors fuelling this change.
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