Bengaluru: Ghost Story Collective plans Halloween event at Shoonya Centre

Bengaluru residents can share ghost stories at Shoonya Centre on Saturday, when Ghost Story Collective hosts a Halloween storytelling evening and contest for the best tale.

Founded by lawyer-researcher Akanksha Dutta and Indian-American lawyer and YouTube documentarian Tarun Sridharan, the collective combines personal accounts with discussions of haunting folklore, its cultural significance and the psychology of horror.

Its earlier gatherings have drawn on campfire and hostel-night storytelling traditions. Stories shared at those sessions included unexplained footsteps at a farmhouse and sightings of a shadowy, long-armed figure. The group also examines recurring horror figures, including the woman in white, across Kerala, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh and Southeast Asia.

Attendee Ananya Sarkar said the format offered a way to meet people through first-person tales: “I had an engaging time listening to real-life stories and sharing my own.”

The Saturday session will include the contest for the evening’s best ghost tale.