Controversial godman readies for his big screen debut in MSG

Controversial godman readies for his big screen debut in MSG
By: Rishi Majumder

To fight controversy, you need spectacle. I ask 47-year-old Gurm-eet Ram Rahim Singh Insan, head of Dera Sacha Sauda, if I should worry that his followers will kill me, like they allegedly killed journalist Ram Chandra Chhatr-apati, for writing something they didn’t like.

We’re in a conference room at the Times of India building in Noida. The godman wears a bright yellow tee shirt and leopard print harem pants. His videographer hovers around filming us. Insan’s eyes — in between vast beard and hair — are watchful.
The Dera Sacha Sauda, a sociospiritual organisation with five crore followers, has been embroiled in a long list of controversies. There have been protests and clashes over Insan seen to be dressing like Guru Gobind Singh, ongoing murder and rape cases, and suspicion of illegal arms possession. As we speak, the CBI is filing an FIR against him for having allegedly ordered the castration of 400 followers.
The Dera, headquartered at Sirsa, Haryana, was founded in 1948 by Shah Mastana who established 25 ashrams in Haryana, Punjab and Rajasth-an, where the Dera’s key influence lies. Each Dera guru cho-oses his successor. Mastana chose Shah Satnam Singh who passed the reigns to Insan in 1990. People of any religion or caste can be members. They adopt ‘Insan’ as their surname. To my question Insan offers context. “In the ashram we often discover cobras. We put them into 20 litre Bisleri containers and set them free. If someone abuses he goes without food for a day. How can I order a killing?“ There’s the spectacle. A man conjuring up an image of a deadly cobra in a Bisleri container.
Another spectacle is the trailer of MSG: The Messenger of God (the first part of the title is a hybrid abbreviation of the latter) a film where Insan plays himself. It’s about the Insan’s war against social ills and how vested interests conspire to kill him. Insan is also the director, cinematographer, costumer, music director and playback singer. The trailer has over 21 lakh views on YouTube. Insan claims to have shot 80 percent of the sequel already.
This film, shot in 67 days, is a culmination of Insan’s attempts, since 2011, to reach out to youth through pop culture. “Eighty percent of our followers are youth,” he says. He has composed and sung social and spiritual songs — that fall in or in between genres like rock, pop, rap and hip-hop — in concerts with lakhs of people. The video of the particularly garish, Highway Love Charger, which went viral online has youth dancing vigorously to it.
At one such gathering some youngsters were telling Insan about a movie they had gone for.“They were embarrassed because cinema is perceived to be a bad influence.” So he thought of MSG.
At the heart of MSG is the seed of modern propaganda: Marshal McLuhan’s `The medium is the message’. Says Aditya Insan, an ophthalmologist and Dera spokesperson, “When people see one person directing, acting, composing, singing and doing stunts, they will know what spirituality can achieve.”
When Insan took over, he was 23 and a mere sevakar at the Dera, which had a following of around 11 lakh. He got his guru mantra from Singh when he was five. He thinks he was first aware of a larger divinity when he was a few months old and “a bird would come repeatedly into my room”.
There are other stories aro-und Insan’s childhood, regurgitated by Dera members like mantras. He drove a tractor at the age of eight, inaugurated a reservoir that never goes dry and so on. And contemporary miracle tales. Aditya believes Insan helped his father out of paralysis. “I don’t care if they strip me of my medical degree for saying so.”
These are augmented with accounts of scientific achievement. Primarily the Dera’s meditation centres and campaigns against drug addiction and alcoholism but also blood donation drives, an eye bank, a subsidised hospital and schools and relief work. Also, refuge to acid attack victims, transgenders, and sex workers who wish to leave their trade.
The Dera’s assets are declar-ed to be about `240 crore. Other less advertised ventures, run on Dera land or with its support, include, reportedly, a small entertainment park, hotel, restaurant, TV channel, newspaper, magazine, shopping complex, wedding hall, petrol pump, cricket stadium, aloe vera and organic farms, factories and shops.
To fight controversy, you need a point of disassociation. Insan doesn’t want to talk about the cases, because they’re subjudice, but when I press him on Chhatrapati’s murder he says they’re registering names of people who take the Jaame-Insaan (a mix of milk, water and rose essence, an induction ritual) now, but didn’t earlier. “I didn’t even know the accused,“ Insan says. “I can’t control every action of every follower.”
When I ask Aditya about the cases he asks me to understand “geostrategy”.
I ask Insan why he appears so violent. “Self defence,” he says. “I take care to beat up those attacking me in such a way that they don’t die.”
He says the Dera is teaching many girls at his ashram self defence. They’re teaching boys too. Also, the Dera has a ‘political wing’. “This is not run by the Dera,” says Insan. “But followers who said they wanted to be politically active.” The point of dissociation returns. “I merely preside over meetings and read out names of those leading activities to check for objections.”
Leaders of various political parties visit him. In 2007, Dera “satsangis” in Punjab supported Congress. On October 7, 2014, 44 of 90 BJP candidates in Haryana met Insan. Days later members of the Dera’s political wing in Haryana were quoted supporting the party.
It won. Now, Insan is glad Prime Minister Narendra Modi is speaking of issues such as Swachch Bharat, female foeticide and drugs. “He’s adopted the same issues I’ve been raising for so long now.”


Controversies
Conflict with Sikhs: In 2007, he wore an attire resembling the tenth Sikh Guru Gobind Singh
Prime suspect in the death of journalist Ram Chattrapati
Rape charges: A sadhvi at the dera accused the baba of rape

He is accused of forcing castration of 400 followers
Reports of arms training at the dera
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