Earth day: Journey to the wettest place in the world, no, it isn’t Cherrapunji

Aasheesh Sharma and photographer Raj K Raj journeyed to Mawsynram, a cluster of hamlets in Meghalaya – now the wettest place in the world (sorry, it isn’t Cherrapunji!). They got drenched, but returned with an extraordinary story.

The clouds descend on you within seconds. A few kilometres out of Shillong, on the road to Mawsynram, a cluster of hamlets considered the wettest in the world, the first few drops appear on our windshield. Suddenly, visibility reduces from 30 metres, to 10 metres, to just five. And then we are driving on a highway glistening with a miasma of mist. “Welcome to Meghalaya, the abode of the clouds!” hollers Komsingh Swer, our stocky, cheerful charioteer.

What is it about the magic of the monsoon that keeps the world mesmerised? In India, it is the most awaited season because it rejuvenates millions of parched souls facing the wrath of the sun during our long summers. From Kalidas’s Meghdootam, to Tagore’s A Rainy Day, the magic of the monsoons has inspired brilliant literature and poetry. Between June and September, these moisture-laden winds rise above mountains, cool the air and bring bucket-loads of rain. Little wonder then that rain gods smile brightest over the Western Ghats, the foothills of the Eastern Himalayas and, of course, the Khasi hills of Meghalaya, where we’re headed.

According to the Guinness Book of World Records, Mawsynram, at 1,400 metres above sea level, is the wettest place on Earth. “By average rainfall, the wettest place is Mawsynram, with 11,873 mm of rain per annum. The second highest is Cherrapunji, with an average annual rainfall of 11,430 mm per year,” reads the record on the Guinness website.

On The Road to Mawsynram
Our driver Komsingh Swer smiles into the rear-view mirror through bright red lips stained by kwai, the betel nut-leaf-lime concoction everyone in the Khasi hills chews. The SUV hugs the curves and negotiates unpaved roads with ease. Still, the 58-kilometre stretch from Shillong to Mawsynram is easily the worst approach road in the state, he reckons.

Fishing for gold: children in Mawsynram angle for goldfish. "Four out of five people in Meghalaya indulge in fishing on the weekend," says Dr PM Nadon, a dental surgeon

Stop gushing, will you! The Kreng Kreng Falls on the way to Syntain from Mawsynram Village. The Khasi Hills, the wettest location in the world, are famous for their spectacular waterfalls.

Misty mountain top: a waterfall on the highway from Shillong to Cherrapunji. Cherrapunji, with its infrastructure in place, is a bigger draw with tourists

Portrait of a family: Jasuklang Dewsaw, 27, a security guard and wife Skhembhalang Disiar, 26, a teacher, earn R17000 every month between them