Meet Anasuya, the woman managing a Shivamogga crematorium for over 25 years

The rituals and customs of several communities restrict women from attending the cremation of the dead. However, the hardships of life have compelled a woman in Shivamogga to work as a caretaker at a crematorium for over 25 years.

Anasuya, 45, looks after the Rotary Crematorium at Vidya Nagara in Shivamogga. She takes documents, arranges fuel for the pyre, assists family members in conducting the rituals and ensures that the families get the ashes later.

Since she was 18

Anasuya entered the crematorium at the age of 18, when she married Nagaraj, who worked as a watchman there. The couple had a thatched hut on the crematorium premises. A couple of years later, Nagaraj died, following which Anasuya took over as the caretaker.

“I have handled thousands of bodies over the past three decades. On many occasions, I myself have lit the pyre in the absence of family members. During the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly, I single-handedly cremated many,” says Ms. Anasuya.

There were days when the number of dead bodies that reached the crematorium was as high as 21 during the pandemic. “There were hardly any family members to accompany the bodies those days, due to restrictions imposed by the government to avoid the spread of infection. I handled those difficult days alone,” she recalls.

Demand for a house

Anasuya, a native of Gokarna in Uttara Kannada district, moved to Shivamogga at a young age. Her husband, Nagaraj, had two sons from his first marriage. They set up their family in a makeshift house in the crematorium premises. Anasuya took care of her stepsons, one of whom died a few years ago. Another stepson lives away from her.

She even gave birth to a baby, who died within a month. “For many years, we lived in a hut a few yards away from the burning pyres. It was not easy. I always cherished a dream of having my own house in a residential locality,” says Ms. Anasuya.

Her repeated pleas to Shivamogga City Corporation and other government agencies for the grant of a house have remained unfulfilled. Now, she stays alone at a rented house in the city.

She reaches the crematorium early in the day and stays there up to 6.30 p.m. The Rotary Club that manages the crematorium pays her a salary of ₹8,000 a month. Hardly any of her relatives visit her.

When asked how long she would work in the crematorium, pat comes the reply, “As long as I am alive, I work here. What else can I do?” She then remarks philosophically, “Anyhow, everybody has to come here one day. And, in my case, I stay here until that day.”