I had the good fortune to be a participant in a man beating festival in one UP village
You simply cannot stop there. Go on, tell us more!!
btw LG, have you ever seen the whip man? I don't know the tribe, but its a guy wearing a skirt like outfit, with lots and lots of bells on his feet. He usually paints his face heavily and carries a huge horsewhip, with which he lashes himself mercilessly, while dancing to the beat of the dhol that his wife plays. Sometimes the wife balances a basket with a ferocious mask in it. I think they are some kind of gypsies, they always travel as a couple.