Mukesh Mills- Colaba, Mumbai.

      The fear of the unknown isn’t new and has forever intrigued us to dig a little deeper and find out more about what could be a figment of our imagination or something from the other world. Our series of most haunted places gives a sneak peek of places that have spooked many for something or someone strange. Today I will tell you about Mukesh Mills, a location that you may have seen in several Bollywood movies and ad commercials. But did you know this place is believed to be haunted? So much so that crew members hesitate to shoot here after sunset. Not just that, several actors have felt something eerie here and are spooked out or vowed to never shoot here again. So what is it about this place that could be the reason for its haunting?

      Mukesh Textile Mills was established by the East India Company in 1870s. After a fire broke out, killing thousands of people, this mill was shut down on 18th January. The ruins of this deserted mill served the film industry and this place became a hotspot for haunted shoots. However, the scary and dark history of this Mill is enough to scare every soul who dares to enter the area after sunset. Stories of a possessed actress and uncomfortable eerie interiors are unusual to the mill. Who knew that a real haunted place in Mumbai would serve as a story inspiration for mainstream Bollywood!

      For those of you who have watched the Shah Rukh Khan starrer “Om Shanti Om”, this story may sound oddly familiar. Even though the mill remained shut for work ever since the fire, it became a shooting location for several movies, TV series and commercials. The song Jee Karda from Badlapur, a few action sequences in Salman’s Wanted and the famous Jumma Chumma Dede song from Hum have been shot here. But there have been stories about things getting lost, crew members hearing voices and actors getting possessed. Bipasha Basu who shot here for one of her movies too felt something strange. She felt as if something did not let her say her dialogues in one particular shot location but she would be fine in any other part of the mill. Even Varun Dhawan felt the chills while filming Jee Karda and the crew would stick together and wrap up before it got dark. TV actress Kamya Punjabi vowed never to shoot here again after she heard about one of the girls there getting possessed and talking to the crew in a manly voice asking them to leave the premises.

Bhangarh Fort- Alwar, Rajasthan.

      Bhangarh Fort is situated on the border of Sariska Tiger reserve in the Aravali range in the deserted town of Bhangarh, Rajasthan. Bhangarh is a ruined town between Jaipur and Alwar.  Bhangarh fort is a major tourist attraction and is said to be one of the most haunted historical places in the world. Many myths are related with this haunted fort. Out of the numerous stories about bhangarh fort one that is most prevalent is that the Bhangarh city was built by King Madho Singh. For this city, the Emperor got approval by ascetic Guru Balu Nath who meditated at this place. The approval was given on the condition that the shadow of emperor's palace would never touch him at his prohibited retreat. If shadow touched over his place, the city would turn into ruins. The emperor started his fort construction with his money and strength. The Bhangarh fort was constructed and finally shadowed the prohibited retreat of Guru Balu Nath. As per power of Saint, the entire town was destroyed and ever since any construction around the crushed location or palace faces collapse. The samadhi of Guru Balu Nath is still there where he was buried.

      The second story revolves there is about the beautiful princess Ratnavati of Bhangarh and was famed for her stately beauty all over her own kingdom and the neighboring states. By the time the princess turned 18 years old, she started getting matrimonial offers from different states. There was a tantrik called Singhia, who was completely smitten by her but knew that his match was impossible with the princess. But Singhia (tantrik) under the spell of glorious beauty of The Princess decided to decoy the princess with his magical powers (jadu/ black magic). One day Singhia saw the princess's maid in the market. So he thought, he'll marry the princess by using black magic on the oil that the maid was purchasing so that by touching it, the princess would surrender herself to magician. However, the princess saw the Sanghia Tantrik trick that he was enchanting the oil. So the princess poured the oil on to the ground. The oil on ground turned touched a rock and rolled towards the magician and crushed him ( Singhia ). Before dying, the magician cursed the Bhangarh city to death and said there will be no more rebirths. After this incident, the curse showed its results in the battle between Bhangarh and Ajabgarh, where Ratnavati was assassinated. However, some local (folk) stories tell that the princess has taken a rebirth somewhere else. The Bhangarh fort is waiting for her return and end the sadistic curse. According to the folk tales, Bhangarh fort is the dwelling of ghosts and that is why entry is prohibited for tourists or visitors in the fort before sunrise and after sunset. 
There is a rumor that spirits roam in Bhangarh Fort at night. People often hear strange noises (screaming, crying voice of women, bangles sound in the rooms) and they reported many weird and scary-incidents like someone's talking and a special smell is felt. Such kind of weird incidents are reported in the fort after dusk.

People have seen ghostly shadow, strange lights, unusual sound of music and dance coming from the Bhangarh fort. It is said that whoever entered in the fort after sunset and stayed there for a night, will not return back ever.

Brij Raj Bhavan, Kota- Rajasthan.

      Next on our list of haunted places is the Brij Raj Bhavan of Rajasthan. The majestic mansion is now a heritage hotel which is haunted by the spirit of an English soldier. Rajasthan is one of the most popular tourist destinations of the country and attracts several foreigners every year to its historic forts and majestic palaces. But it is also infamous for the number of haunted places it is believed to have. I have already told you about Kuldhara which is an abandoned village where no one lives. And today I will tell you about another haunted place in Rajasthan, the Brijraj Bhawan Palace Hotel in Kota.

       A palace that was once home to Major Charles Burton, is a heritage hotel today but is rather infamous for being a haunted property. The story goes that Major Burton was killed here by Indian sepoys during the mutiny of 1857. He was holed up in one of the upper rooms with his two sons as they looted the palace and then they surrendered after five hours of siege. The soldiers killed all of them and later the British buried their bodies in the Kota cemetery with full military rights. The British also reclaimed this property which later became the property of the Queen of Kota. But in the ’70s, the government renovated it and it became the Brijraj Bhawan Palace Hotel.

       But the property soon became the talk of the town when people began saying that it was haunted by the ghost of Major Charles Burton. Even though his spirit does not really harm anyone, guards working here have often heard a man’s voice speaking in English and commanding them to not fall asleep or smoke. And if they do fall asleep on duty, the ghost even slaps them to wake them up. This incident has happened with quite a number of guards. Though guests haven’t had much of a problem here, some have complained of feeling a sudden discomfort in some parts of the palace hotel.

Delhi- Cantonment area.

     Until February 1938, the Cantonment Board Delhi was known as the Cantt authority. The area of the Cantonment is approx. 10,521 acres. It is near Delhi University, nearest Bus Stop is Daula Kaun and nearest landmark overhead Water Tank. Of one of the many places believed to be haunted, Delhi Cantt’s name is definitely in the Top 10. When I first heard about it, to me it sounded completely ridiculous primarily because it did not fit in the criteria. It is not  ancient site like, definitely not a place far away from civilization and there is no violent and gory past attached to it. It is just like any other residential colonies in cities all over the world. What’s more, it’s in a city that never sleeps and is heavily guarded both by the cops and Indian Army. Well illuminated roads with endless traffic that is alive 24 hours but to my surprise that is what the lore was attached to.

     Delhi cantonment road really a terrifying place for those had seen this eerie ghost lady. Many drivers on the night had gone through the nightmare. More than 100 of people have seen that lady of Delhi Cantt road, 12 of them have died. The lady ghost often appears and disappears in front of the eyes of victims. They felt she often tried to make them nervous and horrified. Even she knocked the door if the car raises its speed too. Some people claim

maybe that lady died in a car accident on cantt road or maybe she was a hitchhiker in her life. Anyway, everyone in that particular road is strictly advised, not to stop the vehicle if someone asks for a lift. 

      There are a few beliefs as to who this woman was in her life. Some say that she was one of the many unfortunate girls who have fallen prey to a sick mind’s lust in she was raped. It is believed that on the last night of her life, she asked for a lift elsewhere in the city. She was raped in her a moving car and then dumped her body at Delhi Cantt. Ever since, she is stuck here in a death loop, asking for a lift and repeating the events of her death each night. Some think of her as a vengeful spirit seeking revenge on men, as a matter of fact any man who gave her a lift. With this strange incidence, that area becomes one of the scariest places in Delhi and gets this real Indian ghost story.