Two Malaysians willingly go behind bars in Telangana. Here's why
What's the story
With the steep rise in experiential tourism, offers are getting increasingly obscure and off beat. You must have done/heard of bungee jumping, scuba diving, river rafting. How about spending a day inside a jail like a real prisoner? Telangana's Sangareddy Old Jail complex lets you do just that for Rs. 500/day. Two Malaysians checked out of the jail only today. Read on for more.
Global takers
Sangareddy Old Jail museum gets its first international tourist prisoners
Two friends, dentist Kenny Ng and restaurateur Kelvin Ong from Malaysia's Selangor, spent the weekend (48 hours) in Sangareddy's Old Jail museum as part of its 'Feel the Jail' program. The duo, who wanted to experience "prison life", found out about the scheme online three months ago, got in touch with jail superintendent Santosh Rai and are now in India on a five-day tour.
Why?
Sangareddy jail has had 47 tourist inmates so far
Originally Sangareddy District Central Jail, it's located in Medak district, 70km from Hyderabad. Spread over three acres and nine barracks, it was built by the Nizams in 1796 and converted into a museum in September 2016. Initiated by prison's deputy SP Lakshmi Narasimha, the 'Feel the Jail' program aims to dissuade people from taking to crime by letting them experience its horrific outcomes.
Details
Tourists are treated like real prisoners
For authentic feel, tourist prisoners are treated like real jail inmates. They are given a uniform, an aluminum plate, a steel mug, basic bedding and prison-made soap. If interested in living inside the heritage jail for a day or more, you need to inform the administration at least a day in advance. So far, 47 people have availed the novel scheme.
Routine
Here's what inmates are made to do during the day
The routine inside jail: 5am: Wake up call by two guards, ablutions. Your cell will be cleaned and you'll be taken out into the courtyard. 6:30am: Tea 7:30am: Breakfast (idlis) 10:30am - 11am: Lunch (rice, dal, sambhar) 5pm: Dinner (curry, rice, curd) Activities: You might be asked to do some cleaning and plant saplings. 6pm: You'll be locked in your cell for the night.