Now God and sex on Varma's mind

Director-producer Ram Gopal Varma, whose films are mostly inspired by real life incidents, has started writing the script of his next film "God and Sex", based on Swami Nityananda's alleged sex scandal, which will take a hard look at the happenings in an ashram.

"My whole idea is to take a hard look at what happens behind the close doors of an ashram. That doesn't necessarily mean sexual activities. It's about power politics; it's about (an) industry running behind (it)," Varma told IANS in an interview.

From the scandalous incident of Swami Nityananda, Varma has drawn the conclusion that one can win over God but not over sex.

"You see so many 'babas' all over the place. I have been seeing...and so many of them are exposed. In spite of that, so many devotees keep going to them. As God doesn't speak, the next best thing you can have is a godman," the film-maker said.

"He has to design a certain image to make the devotee believe in him, but since he is a man at the core, he will fall prey to sex one day, which happened in the case of Nityananda," he added.

"So I thought about the interesting contrast between God and sex. You take all the bigwigs like N.D. Tiwari, a big politician, to Swami Nityananda to S.P.S. Rathore - they fell prey to sex, interestingly. So no matter, even if you win over God, you can't win over sex," Varma said.

Asked if he was prepared to withstand any protests by devotees, he said: "It depends on what I intend to show. My film will get more publicity, whichever way."

What excites Varma to make the film is to reveal that the 'babas' who are worshipped as godmen are actually very normal human beings.


"What I loved most about the Nityananda story is not the sex part but that he is watching Kannada film songs. That gave me the idea of how much a normal man he is. In his private life beyond the close doors, he is a normal man," Varma said.

"They earn in millions. No one is bothered where this money comes from. All are bothered that he had sex," the film-maker added.

Varma hasn't yet decided whom to cast in the lead role for the film.

Nityananda has not been seen in public since the telecast last month of video footage showing him in a sexual act with two women.