User reviews

The fact that anyone still attends this gross predator's yoga workshops is beyond me. Before even hearing the accusations against him, I found Bikram's demeanor and presence to be awkward and unsettling. With the accusations though...? I was interested enough in this documentary to see it through to the end, but I would have liked to have better understood why so many people were captivated by Bikram as a yoga instructor. No one could really explain that. Not someone I'd want to take a single yoga class with let alone be isolated with at teacher training. If you're interested in cults, this documentary will interest you, because essentially he's a cult leader.

I really want to puke. Not because of the movie. I like the movie. But looking at the guy Bikram, OMG, why would anyone listen to that kind of person. So strange!

My Rating : 7/10

The documentary is well-made and I thought the pacing and editing was engaging - a must-watch for anyone into Yoga, wellness industry culture and lover of documentaries in general.

The guy is honestly a nutcase and an absolute liar and charlatan who abused his power and position. Why would anyone listen to this kind of maniac?!

So strange!!

While an interesting enough watch, this doco didn't really cover anything more than what was already covered in the ESPN podcast series BIKRAM.

Some parts were funny, but Bikram is like one of those guys that exist in our society who has money,power and thinks that they can have anything and anyone they want without asking, just for demanding it.

I was waiting in anticipation for this documentary as someone who has been aware of the allegations made against Bikram for a few years now. As a yogi myself and someone who has been to Bikram yoga the documentary explores the benefits of his classes but also exposes the shady and disgusting and cult like way he made his empire. I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of studios soon distance themselves from the Bikram brand and rebrand as simply "hot yoga". The documentary was impeccably put together and a must watch for any yogi

We lived close to a Bikram yoga studio in London, which in essence means getting down into very little, in hot (temperature) conditions and stretching yourselves as defined by Bikrams teachings.

..... sweat, smell, dirt... and more... it didn't appeal to us and came as no surprise when we learnt of the accusations made towards Bikram.

The documentary was interesting to watch but I can't help metaphorically 'face palming' myself when I hear of how gullible many of these women are. "I kept going back expecting something different" says one of the supposedly intelligent women.

6 out of 10. With 3 of those stars awarded for the funniest moment of the documentary when the lawyer for the women said Bikram came off the witness stand and gave his defence team a thumbs up. What a wally!

To anyone claiming this is one-sided: they can't edit in what you didn't say. Bikram's own interactions with the prosecutor told the story. This man felt he was above everyone and women most of all. His contempt and narcissism is palpable when you see his responses. That said- those attending his classes all silently (some vocally) condoned this abhorrent behavior. You can see how some become natural born cult leaders as there are sheep aplenty.

The documentary is told in a very simple way, using very basic techniques and clichéd ways of painting a picture. It made me think that this could have been done by a very unexperienced director or something. There is so much material of Bikram and his life but still someone thought it was important to be very literal in the way they told the story. For instance, if someone said "it all went dark", they would cut to a black screen to enforce it even more. Or if someone said I was driving down Rodeo dr. in my red car, they would show clips of someone doing exactly that. It's the overexplaining of the unimportant details that made me roll my eyes a couple of times.

However, the fact that this is a very interesting story makes it worthwhile. I had never heard about him before and would recommend people seeing this for the same reason I would recommend someone to watch documentaries about The church of Scientology for example.

While this isn't the most accomplished documentary, it sure is satisfying to see the repulsive fraud Bikram Chaudhury exposed to a wider audience. It disgusts me that this man has got away with his behaviour as long as he has, and its painful to watch these gullible morons continue to throw money at him even after these incredibly worrying allegations. The final shots in this film make you lose faith in humanity, or at least, middle-class westerners.

As others have pointed out, the documentary pretty much declares him guilty from the offset and doesn't take any other angle into account. This is a very one-sided take on the issue and morally it's probably not the right way to go about it, however damning the evidence appears to be.

But even aside from the sexual abuse allegations, this man is a true charlatan. His franchised yoga is a joke and his swollen ego has been massaged for way too long. Watching even a few minutes footage of him around other people is enough to see that he is a delusional narcissist and sociopath. Hopefully this documentary will encourage people to exercise a little more caution when it comes to handing over their money and social identities to phoney gurus with God-complexes.

Would have liked for there to be a bit more resolution, but unfortunately that's how the story unfolded in real life as well. Well told story and use of archival footage. Just a weird story about a creepy guy who teaches hot yoga.

Well done doc on the rise and fall of Bikram Choudhury, the founder of Bikram yoga, the most famous style of hot yoga in the world. I must say I had never heard of such terms and it was all a bit alien to me but the story is very compelling and well structured, as it starts as a rags to riches story and then deconstructs everything and paints a very ugly picture. It is not groundbreaking but it is effective. My only complaint, as others have already pointed out, is that it all feels a bit biased. I don't think it's enough to ruin the experience but it does have that stench of not being neutral, as a good doc should be. But, unfortunately, that virtue is becoming harder and harder to find in modern day docs.

The documentary hit all of the right beats. It explained the mania around Bikram yoga, the cult of the leader status he had, the power he leveraged over people, and his ultimate downfall, but I feel like it only scraped the surface. If you really want an in-depth look at the corruption and perversion of Bikram, check out the ESPN 30 for 30 long-form podcast on Bikram. I thought they did a better job on covering this.

This was an interesting film that told another chapter in the story of the times up/me too movement. The interviews were captivating and the film was well edited, especially with the use of archival footage. The film somehow made me both more interested in Bikram's type of yoga and full of hate for Bikram himself.

"Bikram: Yogi, Guru, Predator" is an exceptionally well made and well constructed documentary. It's also one that, by the end, will probably also make you very angry for a variety of reasons.

The story is about Bikram Choudhury, a world famous yogi who built a huge financial business empire in the United States in the 1980s until nearly today. The first portion of the film essentially talks about Bikram's history and his style...and his followers talk about him glowingly. The second portion of the film then changes focus--to the sexual harassment and sexual abuse by Bikram. Additionally, his reaction to these allegations and lawsuits follows...and how he essentially got away with it will leave you angry and confused.

Overall, exceptionally well made and a film this is nearly perfect. My only complaints were a few of the interviews seemed ill-suited for the film, as they had no first hand knowledge of Bikram's horrible behaviors. Still, the documentary is compelling and well worth seeing.

The objectiveness of this documentary are lacking in far too many ways. this is my objective assesment of this documentary. i do not yogg myself but i admire the ones who streches their limits as far as shown in this film , and do feel petty for the ones that has become victimized.

what i do feel petty for also is that this documentary also discredit the yoga movement, and the practice of'' bikram'' yoga as a scam and humbug. so this documentary has not been aiding this form of activity. there will always be predators out there, in yoga, in sports in education, in religion, where the ''pupil'' are so profound and flat on the nose to be what the teacher wants you to be. so beware to all , young as old, there will always be predators and it may happen again.

the grumpy old man shouldnt have deliberated so much about it, but subjectivity and unipolar presentation is not good documentary making. its a 6 and no more than that

I very rarely leave a written review here but after reading those bad reviews stating that this documentary is somewhat bias and giving a forced perspective, I have to disagree with them. I've watched bad documentaries that left a bad taste but this isn't one of them. The documentary clearly pictured the great advantages of yoga technique and show the charming side of Bikram early in the beginning, but the story just makes it own ways to go downhill until there's no place to defend the man. So it's no fault of the documentary that the man is pictured as evil megalomaniac.

Pretty much boilerplate doc on a cult of personality type subject. The rise and subsequent downfall of a (way too) powerful man, etc. But it's executed well. The victims see this as a potential tool for justice, and they come across that way; they are not just pawns in another Netflix content farm cash grab.

I think this man is a bad guy, and the training he gave was not his. So we can also call it a thief. I believe very much that he is a despicable person who ruined a good job.