In an extraordinary scene that left an entire town speechless, a 74-year-old retired Indian Air Force veteran in Gaya decided to hold his own funeral — not out of despair, but out of longing.
Mohan Lal, who had served the nation with pride and discipline, felt the quiet loneliness that often shadows old age. Surrounded by people but unsure of their hearts, he wanted to know how deeply he was still loved and remembered. So, he planned something no one could have imagined — his own farewell.
At the Mukti Dham crematorium in Gaya, everything looked heartbreakingly real. A bier covered in white cloth, mourners chanting hymns, and relatives weeping softly. Then, just as the rituals were about to begin, Lal slowly sat up. The crowd froze. Some screamed. Others cried harder — this time in disbelief and relief.
He told those gathered that he had staged the funeral to see who would truly come for him — who still cared. “I wanted to witness my own farewell,” he said quietly, his voice trembling.
For Lal, the act wasn’t a stunt; it was a statement about love, family, and the fading bonds that time often erodes. Gaya, a city where people traditionally perform rituals for the dead and even for themselves in life, became the stage for his living lesson on human emotion.
His symbolic “death” ended with a puppet being cremated in his place — a ritual nod to the belief that one can symbolically burn away worldly attachments. But the real fire that day was in the hearts of those who realised they had almost lost him — even if just for a few minutes.
The unusual ceremony, now the talk of the town, left many reflecting on how rarely we express love to those who are still with us. Mohan Lal’s story is both shocking and deeply human — a reminder that sometimes, people go to extremes not to die, but to feel alive again.