Uttarakhand news: Foreigners bathe at Rishikesh's Ganga Ghat in bikinis, netizens react

India has a diverse culture and traditions, ranging from the Himalayas in the north to the Indian Ocean in the South. However, people who try new things in their own way sometimes are not liked by people living in different, changing demographies.

Recently, a video of foreign nationals frolicking in bikinis at the sacred Ganga Ghat in Uttarakhand's Rishikesh was circulated on social media. People did not take this video in a positive way, and it elicited strong reactions.

According to the video, the act by foreign nationals is seen as a behaviour as disrespectful to the sanctity of the holy river Ganga.

The video was shared by a social media user 'Himalayan Hindu' who captioned it as a transformation of the revered Ganges into a beach akin to Goa, reported News18.

The caption read, “Thank you @pushkardhami for turning Pavitra Ganga into Goa Beach. Such things are now happening in #Rishikesh & soon it will become Mini Bangkok.”

Here's the video:

The video has garnered 848.7k views and over 400 comments, where social media users lambasted the foreigners for trying to malign the image of holy river Ganga, while others questioned what's wrong in it.

Here are some comments:

One wrote, "There is nothing wrong happening here."

Another wrote, "Nothing wrong here. If you have problem with clothes then there is a problem with your upbringing. Do not behave like a radical Muslim who takes his wife to the beaches in burqas or fully clothed even in the sea."

A third wrote, “Hinduism is supposed to be Liberal. Let it be liberal. Forget semi nudity. Even nudity is embraced as a part of lot of jaaps and tapas in Hinduism. Refrain from contaminating your conservative take on Hinduism.”

"Disciplinary action needs to be taken! Just foz they are foreigners doesn't mean they can do anything. They need to be told that it's not their beach. It's a religious ghat which holds sacred sentiments for us. Really shameful," wrote the fourth.

"Naga sadhus literally roam naked on streets, gather for festivals and you’re saying these foreigners are making it mini bangkok because they’re in bikinis??!!" a fifth user commented.

Someone wrote, "Great post. It has triggered people to attack "trads" and trying to imitate rishi simultaneously."

"This has been happening long before Uttarakhand came into existence. It has started to come to fore only now because every person has a camera phone and there is social media :)" another person commented.