Indian's Well of Death

The cylindrical wooden tube is about 30 feet high and 35 feet across. The Well of Death is a risky act, but it always draws a huge crowd.

The driver for today is 32-year-old Bahar Hussain. He earns 10 US dollars a day for his performance. “It’s a very dangerous job. Everything is really hard. You have to balance, then ride inside a cylindrical structure. It’s what we do for a living. We move from one place to another to entertain people... that’s our main reason for doing this.”

Bahar has been doing it now for six years. He knows that this job will not last forever.

“We can only do these stunts for another few years, and after that we have to stop. There must be something for us at the end. God will provide us with some work. God will free us from this profession.”

But for 22-year-old Mohammed Fahmi, this is his passion... and also his main job for the past six years. “I don’t think it’s dangerous. You just need to have the courage... anyone can do it. It’s just like riding a motorcycle on the road. Everyone at home has asked me to stop, but this is my hobby. That’s why I’m still doing it.”

Bahar and Mohammed are part of a troupe called the “Maut ka kuan” or the death well, which has a total of 8 riders. They move from one city to another throughout the year, sometimes they put on their own show or sometimes they’re part of a festival like this one. The whole troupe can earn more than 100 US dollars a day from a two-month long festival.

Today it’s not only motorbikes that are riding the Well of Death... but cars as well. 40-year-old Mohammed Rais has been doing this stunt for half his life. By doing this dangerous act, he can send his two children to school and collect money for his younger sister’s marriage. 

“My family, relatives and even some people who just come to watch these shows, they have asked me to stop. But this is my hobby, which I’ve learned and which has now become my livelihood. At first, we were afraid, but now it’s quite easy for us.”

Although it’s dangerous, no one has died in the past few years from performing the stunt. The key, they say, is to master the skill of driving at high speed. Some district governments have banned the show, but the central government doesn’t have any plans to do the same.

The audience pay half a dollar to watch the act for half an hour. The drivers ride at high speed, sometimes with no hands and collect money while performing stunts.They’re riding without a helmet or any kind of safety gear.

Despite the danger, forty one year old doctor Dr Feroz Hashmi is taking his children to watch the show. “This is my first time here and I’ve come for the sake of my children. What they do to earn money is really risky. I think they should also be given a chance to show their talent on television. We really enjoyed it.”