Rebellious Flower (2016)

Director: Krishan Hooda
Writer: Jagdish Bharti
Stars: Prince Shah, Shashank Singh, Mantra
Strength: Acting, Soundtrack
Weakness: Poor Execution, Weak Dialogues
Runtime: 109 minutes
Rating: 2/5

Plot: Based on the early life of famous spiritual guru Osho Rajneesh and his quest for enlightenment.

Review: A movie on a spiritual guru, funded by his own followers, invokes recent memories of the shockingly awful MSG: Messenger of God, made on the self-styled godman, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh. But when Krishan Hooda got the offer to make a film on the life of Osho Rajneesh, the first thing he wanted to clarify is that he didn't want to glorify the spiritual guru to the extent that it feels illogical.

Taking incidents from Rajneesh's young life and using it to fashion a meditative tour of a small part of India's mystical heritage by emulating a quest for answers to life and living, hidden in every human being, this film hopes to trigger a restive spirit within its viewers.

Raja lives with his maternal grandparents in the village while his parents live in a town separated by several miles. Raja's grandparents dote on him and allow him the freedom to expand his mental horizons on his own terms- to the extent that when he questions a visiting Sadhu about the intricacies of religious practice and sees him walk out in anger promising never to set foot in the village again, his grandparents just let it go. As he grows older, Raja meets three spiritual gurus -each of whom teach him something that enriches his young life and assuages the avid curiosity he possesses. The third meeting signifies the final step to a path of enlightenment. And there ends this lesson on Rajneesh's youth.

The problem with the film is its inability to spell out its definitive purpose. While the treatment and flow is suitably meditative and searching, the content appears to be hollow. The script is not enlightening enough, the dialogues are silly and it's only performances that inveigle you into this studied enchantment. Folk music and other classical Indian songs add a strong rhythm to the experience. 

Considering, this is just the first part and next instalments might cover the latter life of the guru, it's sincere if not satisfactory an effort.

Reviewed By Intisab Shahriyar