Gurmeet Ram Rahim arrives for a press conference in New Delhi (Associated Press photo)
Highlights
- Ram Rahim is powerful head of Dera Sacha Sauda sect in Haryana
- Stars in Messenger of God franchise, has super-powers
- Self-styled God man says he works on promoting Indian culture
He claims to have 50 million followers and runs a spiritual empire that promotes vegetarianism and campaigns against drug addiction. But Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, the self-styled God-man from Haryana has another passion: Bollywood.
The third part of a film franchise in which he stars as a Messenger of God, or MSG for short, is titled "MSG - The Warrior Lion Heart." The 49-year-old plays a secret agent armed with a twirled moustache and an assortment of swords to fight the aliens and UFOs.
Critics say the films serve as propaganda for his followers, the Dera Sacha Sauda sect, which Insan doesn't dispute. Speaking recently with reporters, the flamboyant spiritual guru said he was not trying to become a movie star but instead wanted to spread Indian culture along with his message of humanity to the masses.
"You will see in this film that our culture was so powerful that the technology that the aliens are bringing, it had already been used by our ancestors. That is why the scenes appear larger than life. We should also show India's greatness," said Ram Rahim, whose sect describes itself as a nonprofit spiritual and welfare organization.
Devotees of Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh Ji Insan stands near a poster of his new film "MSG, The Warrior Lion"
With a guaranteed audience among his followers, Ram Rahim said he's had little trouble getting his films released commercially in cinemas. Two earlier films featured Insan as a gravity-defying superhero fighting drug addiction and gender issues.
"In my first two films, I appeared as a guru. In this film, I am playing a character," he said. "I play a warrior who is also India's top secret agent. If you see his background, he is a warrior who fights with aliens to save the honor of our mothers and sisters, and the honor of our Mother Earth."
Ram Rahim maintains complete control over his film productions. In the latest, he is credited in 30 categories of the film, including dialogue writer, choreographer, props, stunts, film editor and makeup artist.
He dismissed detractors who say his outlandish costumes and self-glorifying antics on screen run counter to his spiritual mission.
"I have researched the scriptures, the religious texts - there is no dress code given for holy men," he said. "Nowhere does it say that the saints have to wear anything specific. If your thoughts are pure, you can be one with God even in a trouser and shirt."