Does dark tourism fuel fascination or commercialise tragedy?

Diving to the pit of the ocean or touring a historic mass grave site are not without risks. Extreme adventure, sharpened with a double-edged sword of macabre, still has ample takers

An excursion to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean to see the Titanic shipwreck first-hand is a journey unlike any other. Passengers must climb into a minivan-sized submersible that takes about eight hours to clock the expedition; two-and-a-half hours to dive to the seabed, a few hours to gawk at the century-old ruins, and another two-and-a-half hours to ascend to the surface.  

The 22-feet-long vessel in question was the ill-fated Titan, an “experimental submersible” owned and operated by the private company OceanGate Expeditions. Onboard were five members who had signed up for what was a supposedly monumental peregrination. But destiny had different plans. The underwater craft lost contact with its support ship on the surface an hour and forty-five minutes into the voyage in remote North Atlantic waters on 18 June, 2023, prompting a global search-and-rescue operation that was likened to a race against time. The frantic five-day mission ended in tragedy when debris of the Titan, believed to have catastrophically imploded after loss of pressure, were found approximately 1,600 feet from the bow of the Titanic on 22 June. Any hope of a safe return was immediately dashed and the crew was declared dead.

The scenario, albeit unusual, was not impossible. After all, passengers had signed a waiver that stated the high risks and repeatedly emphasised on the possibility of death. Not to forget that the vessel had not been approved or certified by any regulatory body. Add to it the exorbitant cost of the ticket that came with a whopping price tag of a quarter of a million dollars for a seat! It certainly wasn’t a deterrent for those with the means. Perhaps, it was seen as a feat so exclusive that it could be accessible to only a few. 

“It isn’t necessarily about setting world records, but some people may want to redefine themselves with extreme adventure, especially if they have already achieved other major life goals,” explains Shrradha Sidhwani, a Mumbai-based clinical psychologist and psychotherapist. While risk-takers of such nature may take cognisance of their actions, their thirst for thrill supersedes their sense of caution. “They may view these activities as more secure than they really are, giving them a false sense of control. It could also be viewed as a sense of detachment from ordinary life,” she adds. 

The dark side

Encounters of such kind are a brush with mortality, further tapping into the universal fear of death, and the hope to evade its clutches. It is also the same reason why affluent explorers spend a fortune to journey to the outer limits of space or orbit the Earth. Despite the inherent dangers and the allure of treacherous and unfamiliar surroundings, the possibility of disaster always looms. Nevertheless, individuals willingly invest a significant amount to embrace this risk.

Titan’s main draw was its destination: A historic mass graveyard that is the aftermath of RMS Titanic’s sinking in 1912. Around 1,500 passengers lost their lives in the incident. Even 111 years later, its draw still holds, pulling people to the depths of 12,500 feet below the water’s surface for a glimpse of the vessel’s remains. Visiting sites that are historically associated with death, tragedy, human suffering, and bloodshed are part of a phenomenon called “dark tourism”—a term coined in 1996 by Scottish academics J. John Lennon and Malcolm Foley,  through their publication Dark Tourism: The Attraction to Death and Disaster. 

Places such as the Chernobyl, Auschwitz, Killing Fields of Cambodia, and Catacombs of Paris, to name a few, witness hordes of visitors irrespective of their grim past. A report in The New York Times suggests that “going to abandoned nuclear plants or countries where genocides took place is a way to understand the harsh realities of current political turmoil, climate calamities, war, and the growing threat of authoritarianism.” One could argue that it sits at the intersection of voyeurism and a want to genuinely connect with the place. “Most travellers who seek such experiences are driven by a desire to learn about the destination’s bleak past,” explains Sidhwani. “Sometimes, people who’ve themselves experienced tragedy may be drawn to places that are embroiled in grief.”

A commercialistion of tragedy?

There is no dearth of examples closer to home either. Take Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar for instance. The garden-cum-memorial site, a stone’s throw from the Golden Temple, serves as a sombre reminder of the 1919 massacre, where armed British troops sealed the exits and opened fire on Indian citizens, killing hundreds of innocent men, women, and children, and wounding several hundreds more. The incident is etched in one of the bloodiest chapters in Indian history. “I have goosebumps thinking about it,” says Kamaljit Kaur Sanghar with a quiver in her voice. The Punjab native, and a long-time Mumbai resident, grew up listening to stories of her elders and ancestors who met their tragic end on that fateful day. The wound cut deep and every visit made her heart heavy with grief. “The walls were splattered with bloodstains and riddled with bullet holes. One can only imagine the pain the victims suffered,” she continues. In 2021, the current government renovated the park, inviting scorns from critics who saw the move as an attempt to distort and erase history. That hasn’t stopped Kaur Sanghar from visiting the complex or passing down its stories to her children. “It is important to honour the past,” she acknowledges. “It is the only way to ensure that the future generations will learn the truth.”  

A new fascination

Not too far lies the Partition Museum, a one-of-a-kind documentation of the largest migration in human history that affected up to 20 million people. The loss of life and property was palpable, and even 15 galleries dedicated to various aspects of the region’s history, dating back to pre-colonial India, aren’t nearly enough to grasp the incident’s magnitude. “These are stories of Partition survivors, families who came here with nothing,” Prabhjot Singh, a senior management at the museum, shares over a phone call. “There are (oral and written) records of revolution, looting, stabbing, and violence, especially against women.” Hundreds of visitors pour in everyday, some with very little idea of what to expect, some with morbid curiosity, and some who’ve lived to tell the tale. “In case of the latter, we record the individual’s experience that helps shed new light on history.” Singh adds.

Mystery and retribution are other tropes that fall within the purview of dark tourism. The unidentified skeletal remains of an estimated 600-800 people found at Roopkund Lake in Uttarakhand is an example of the former, while a fascination with the Cellular Jail in Andaman and Nicobar Islands that was used by the British to exile Indian political prisoners, is an example of the latter. Moreover, ‘ghost tours’ lie on the lighter end of the spectrum, blurring the lines between life and death.

In 2016, Mumbai-based company Khaki Tours started ‘Grisly Girgaon,’ a heritage walk that intertwines urban legends with the rapidly changing face of the city’s southern neighbourhoods. “Places like Girgaon, Wadala, Chembur, and Sion are not necessarily considered heritage spots,” says Bharat Gothoskar, founder and CEO of the company. “Girgaon, especially, is rife with folklore, and that’s a cool way of looking at local history.” 

The walk—peppered with talks of local culture and spooky tales—commences at 11 pm on weekends and takes guests past old, presumably haunted buildings and cursed stones, and through winding roads built over graveyards. Between April 2022 and March 2023 alone, the company’s 70+ walking tours amassed over 18,000 sign ups. Their annual ‘26/11 Tour’ conducted via a bus tour traces the junctions of the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks and is usually booked out. “It is our way to pay homage to the martyrs lest we forget and allow history to repeat itself,” expresses Gothoskar. 

Dark tourism sites serve as poignant reminders of humanity's failure to curb extreme behaviours. The answer lies not in avoiding these destinations, but in seeking them with empathy. When appropriately managed, these sites can educate us about the darkest chapters of our history. So, next time you visit these locales, be mindful of your surroundings, choose a local tour guide to gain factual understanding, and think twice before bringing out those selfie sticks. 

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