The film ‘Hanuman Ansh’, made with a budget of only ₹ 1.8 crore, is making great money at the box office these days. The film has done a business of more than ₹50 crore in 25 days of its release. There is a lot of discussion among the audience about this film based on the life of Neem Karoli Baba.
However, before bringing the film on screen, its makers met Premanand Maharaj and took his blessings and guidance. During that time, Premanand Maharaj had given him special advice regarding showing the life of the saint in the film. He had clearly said that one should not add anything to the life of a saint just to make the film popular.
Is it right to add ‘worldliness’ to the life of a saint?
Anupriya Nagar asked Premanand Maharaj that if a person makes a film following the path of religion, can it also be considered as service? On this, Premanand Maharaj said that showing the life of a saint or a great spiritual person on screen is a matter of great responsibility. He explained that to make the film more popular, such things or incidents should not be added to the saint’s life which have no connection with him. An effort should be made to show the story of the saint as it is, with the same emotion and truth. The aim of such a film should not be just entertainment or earning, but to awaken the feeling of devotion, detachment and knowledge in the minds of people.
Don’t add anything to make it popular. While talking about the life of Neem Karoli Baba, Premanand Maharaj especially cautioned the makers. He said that it is not possible to truly imitate the spiritual state of a perfect saint. Therefore, only those things should be kept in the film, which have been read or heard about Baba’s life. He also said that even if the number of viewers of the film is less, there should be no attempt to misrepresent the life of the saint. That means, more important than earning or popularity is the image of the saint and the purity of his message.
Should makers also make spiritual preparations?
Premanand Maharaj also said that mere imitation of external expressions is not enough to play the role of a saint. The artist and the team should try to bring themselves closer to that place through spiritual practices, virtuous living, reading biographies of saints and association with spiritual people.
Film crosses ₹50 crore in 25 days
Interestingly, ‘Hanuman Ansh’, made with a reported budget of around ₹ 1.8 crore, has performed brilliantly at the box office. According to industry tracker Sacnilk, the film has crossed the ₹50 crore mark in 25 days. The beginning was slow, but around the 17th day the film picked up pace and after that the earnings continued. In the film, Shobhinav Satya plays the role of Neem Karoli Baba, while Purnima Tiwari is seen in the role of his wife Ram Beti Sharma.