The Ritual

The sky burial (jhator) is an actual ritual, although the one in the movie here is a far cry from the real thing.

To start with, the sky burial is just that- a burial- not a form of execution or euthanasia. After death, the body is untouched for three days, after which it is washed, wrapped in white bandages, and tied into a fetal position. A ceremony is then preformed, after which the remains are given to vultures, revered creatures that are believed to be able to carry the souls to heaven where they await reincarnation.

All in all, it's a practical method of dealing with bodies in an area where the ground is too rocky and frozen to dig graves and wood too rare a resource to use for cremating.