Dialogues with a viewer of Banaras

I am reproducing a portion of dialogues which I have had recently with someone I have not met personally. These would answer some of the latent questions which others may have in their mind.

Viewer:

Dear Mr. Singh,

I do have a few questions:
What was your process/reasoning behind selecting
Mr. Himesh Reshammiya for the music direction?

Is the story of Banaras an end result of trying to
weave the spiritual essence of Hindu mythology OR did
the story come first and then you wove the
spirituality into it?

Can you share your inspiration behind the story?



LC:

Himesh appealed to me as an engmatic young composer with good knowledge of classical music (his father is a veteran). I also loved his compositions in Tere Naam. My requirement was to have melodies in Banaras gharana of classical Hindustani with contemporary style. My brief was for him to create something which lasts for the next 25 years.

The story originated in my mind in 80s and the three characters who appeared first, were Soham, Babaji and Shwetambari. I was obviousy influenced by Kabir who fascinates me no bounds. Spirituality was not an after thought. In fact the love story and the drama came later. I would not say I created the story on Indian mythology. It is based on personal experience and my own investigations of the truth. I would obviously be influenced by some masters whose knowledge I must have internalized.

My grandfather and father were the biggest influence on the story as my inspiration. They walked on two different paths and yet they both were highly enlightened beings. My grandfather left a distinct mark on me. There is also some intrigue I am born with perhaps.

There is so much more to say but for now, I may stop.






Viewer:

Dear Mr. Singh,

Thank you for the answers - which in turn have
inspired even more curiosity on my part to learn more
about you, your experiences and the influences.

When I watched Banaras for the first time I wasn't
aware of the music direction. I was so awed and taken
by the music along with alll the other aspects of the
movie. When I found out that music direction was by
Himesh, I was shocked and a bit disappointed in
myself. it showed me how biased I was in judging him
only based on his popular video albums & commercials.
I hope Himesh gets to create more music like he did
for Banaras.

You are right - there is no mythology or religion- it
revolves around the quest for truth.
Just before watching Banaras, I had read "The Razors's
Edge" by Somerset Maugham and had liked it a lot. The
lead character is driven by his quest for truth and
eventually finds enlightenment in Southern India with
a guru. Consciously and subconsciously I have compared
Banaras with "Razor's Edge" and wished I could read
"Banaras" the book and grasp more details which may
have been difficult to portray in a movie.

After watching the movie several times, I am still
under the spell of "Banaras" - may seem like a kind
of juvenile thrill having experienced something
totally unexpected. There are lot of great movies and
books on complex topics. One of the (many) things that
impressed me about Banaras is that you've done it with
a very subtle, light touch rather than rubbing it in.
That’s why Razor's Edge is now a distant second (to
me)compared to Banaras.

I wonder what difficulties you faced in producing the
movie. Did you have any experience with the industry?
And the risk of investing so much capital -
commercially was it a successful venture or did you
end up losing money? What can people like me do to
help you?

I understand you come from Banaras and probably grew
up there. . . let me guess. . . your grandfather was a
very disciplined and spiritual being. Perhaps when you
have time . . .

Have you experienced (or been close to it) what Soham
experienced in Saarnath? Is it (enlightenment) a
journey that one can traverse gradually or a state (0
or 1)?
How about "Detachment"? Do you consider it a byproduct
of enlightenment or a separate exercise? Do you come
to US for any reason?

LC:

No, I did not have any experience with the film industry and yet to think of how I developed the courage? Destiny, must that be.

I put in every penny that I had made without any hesitation and have no repentance for it. There is not much return to talk about. It's not that It caught me by surprise.

I had taken no help from anyone except that probably I spent the money that in a way belonged to my family, who very gracefully joined me as producers,

It doesn't bother me to be reduced to where it all began. Of course I will have to wait again to make some more money in order to take next steps but that's ok for me because that's how may be it's all designed to be.

I run an IT company in the mean while.

Would answer your other questions later.