Bengaluru residents hold ‘pothole pooja’ to protest dangerous road conditions. Watch

Bengaluru residents held a 'pothole pooja' to address road safety concerns, blending satire and spirituality.

In a striking display of civic frustration, residents of Bengaluru turned to satire and spirituality on Saturday (September 27) by holding a “pooja” for a pothole. The unusual event was organized by the Bharathinagar Residents’ Forum as a symbolic plea for road safety amid the growing menace of potholes in the city.

In a unique blend of spirituality and satire, Bengaluru residents performed a "pothole pooja" to draw attention to the city's hazardous road conditions.

The group gathered on Webster Road, where a particularly notorious pothole was adorned with rose petals and chrysanthemum flowers. About 20 to 25 residents took part in the “pooja”, which featured a priest performing traditional rituals and chanting prayers, treating the cratered stretch of road like a divine entity. Their message: may no more lives be lost to Bengaluru's crumbling roads.

While such satirical protests have emerged in other neighbourhoods before, this event stood out for blending ritual with civic outrage just as municipal authorities have ramped up efforts to patch potholes citywide.

“Using flowers, a diya, and the services of a priest, members of the Bharatinagar Residents Forum in Cox Town performed a special “Pothole Puja” to highlight the city’s crumbling road infrastructure. The group prayed to God that no more lives be lost due to potholes a grim reality in Bengaluru where several people have died or been injured in pothole-related accidents," a social media post stated, sharing a video of the “pooja”.

Watch the video here:

"Calling their campaign “Pothole Puja & Filling,” residents conducted a ‘homa’ to the so-called “Pothole Gods” before filling a large, dangerous crater on Webster Road near the Cox Town Arch themselves,” it added.