Meeting the Beatles in India

This was akin to watching Paul Saltzman's home movies or photo collection to give him an excuse to talk about himself, mostly not even regarding the Beatles - this is Saltzman's narcissistic ride back to India, with few if any insights about the Beatles. I certaintly didn't learn anything new. Patty and Jenny, God Bless them, didn't have any new insights I hadn't heard before. And the little video footage there was was warmed over short clips I'd seen before years ago.

Seeing this on Amazon Prime - thank Goodness not having to PAY to see this drivel - I kept pushing forward, looking at the video footage as I did so, trying to find the little I could that actually pertained to the Beatles.

Saltzman - for having met THE rock Gods of all time - had nothing insightful to say about his one-on-one chats. "they were nice people" was all he could muster - in various incantations.

AVOID THIS AT ALL COSTS!!!

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

So many great Beatles tunes were written during their stay at the ashram in India, and this film made me feel a deeper connection to those songs. And to the Fab Four themselves. The filmmaker lived what many of us Beatles fans only dream of...real day in and day out living with them - even if only for a week. And his telling is very down to earth, and straight from the heart - a work of love - told from his direct experience - not from the point of view of a filmmaker looking from the outside in. A richly rewarding film for any Beatles fan an/or spiritual seeker.

I saw this movie on Friday night at The Westdale cinema in Hamilton Ontario at the recommendation of some friends, and because the creator was there to talk and answer questions. The film stands on its own, but if you get a chance to hear Paul speak about it, that's even better.

Coincidentally my own dad was in India around the same time, learning meditation at an ashram, although he didn't meet the Beatles.

Paul's adventure-this is as much about him as it is about the Beatles-starts with the rediscovery in his garage of a box of photos that he took in 1968 at Rishikesh, India, the ashram of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Photos so good they belong in a museum.

How did he get these candid, personal, intimate photos of John, Paul, George and Ringo? That's the story, and it's one that celebrates the power of meditation, an open mind, viewing the world from the eye of innocence and childlike wonder.

If you see the film to find out what the Beatles were like at their most relaxed and creative, you will be satisfied. You might also find yourself interested to find out more about what took both them and Paul Saltzman to India to look within.