Mystic India

Introduction

The film, based on a true story and produced by the nonprofits charity group BAPS Care International, follows 11-year-old aspiring yogi Neelkanth on his seven-year barefoot journey across India in 1792. "People see India as poverty and disease. We wanted to show that it is a nation of peace and diversity," Mohak Shroff, a BAPS volunteer, told India-West. "Our goal with this film was to educate people about India, show them India as we see it."

Discussion and analysis

Praised by critics for its breath-taking cinematography, "Mystic India" has already premiered in Australia, Europe, and Africa."We decided to use the IMAX format as opposed to traditional film because we wanted the film to be not only entertaining, but also educational. We wanted it shown in museums," Shroff said. The mission of BAPS, Shroff explained, is to develop the social and spiritual core of the individual, with a focus on education and charitable social programs (Williams, 2007, 67-115).

The character

"Mystic India's" young star, Latesh Patel, was handpicked from 1,100 actors screen-tested in India for the part of Neelkanth. Hollywood director Keith Melton was hired especially for the project, but BAPS members, who contributed over one million volunteer hours, donated most of the professional production services. Thus, Mystic India reveals the culture diversity of India through the unbelievable journey of 7 years old boy, Neelkanth, who travelled 8,000 miles across this majestic land. The readers through this film experience the cultural and geographical diversity of India.

Peter O' Toole provides the corny narration for the film, which emphasis India's spirituality as a locus for cultural tourism. The journey of Neelkanth, a late 18th- century child yogi, across the subcontinent is an excuse for revealing in the superb detail of the 70mm image on IMAX's ginormous screen.

The film was shot in March 2003 and January of 2004. Its production team traveled to more than 100 different film locations in India, at times shooting at a height of 13,000 feet (Parekh, 2007, 123-145). "As Neelkanth meets various faces and encounters geographical and cultural diversity, his journey offers a cohesive representation of India," said Ajay Patel, a BAPS volunteer in Milpitas. The film's Oct. 1 arrival at the Hacker IMAX Theater in San Jose was coordinated by a group of BAPS volunteers headquartered in Milpitas. "What I really love about the film is that it appeals to every type of person, young, old, Indian, non-Indian. Everyone will find something they connect with," said Patel.

The Theme

The main theme that focuses on the movie Mystic India, people see India as poverty and disease. We wanted to show that it is a nation of peace and diversity," Mohak Shroff, a BAPS volunteer, told India-West. "Our goal with this film was to educate people about India, show them India as we see it."

Mystic India is contemplating the geographical and heritage diversity of this magnificent homeland, which comprise the natural attractiveness of their land, from the icy peaks of the Himalayas to the scorching wastelands, while glimpsing heritage ...