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When preachers turn into sinners
Controversies have always been around men and women of power. And when the power is the spiritual kind, the size of scandal is even bigger. Especially in the case of sex scandals, because these gurus or swamis are considered to be above such human hedonism. Over the years there have been a lot of spiritual leaders who have been embroiled in scandalous abuses and assaults.
In the recent past, Asaram Bapu, self-styled godman, had been accused of sexually abusing a 16 year old girl in his Jodhpur Ashram, while the victim’s mother was waiting outside. Shockingly, this kind of pedophilia was not his first time. He has been sexually abusing almost seven more girls who had to recount the horrors in light of the whole scandal. And it turned out that even his son, Narayan Sai proves that the fruit didn’t fall too far from the tree. Sai too had been accused of rape and sexual assault by two sisters. Another sex offending swami is Swami Nithyananda. The spiritual leader got caught in a sex scandal when a video of him caught in a compromising position with a well-known actress came up. Although the godman claimed that he was in a ‘trance’ when this happened, and that he’s impotent, it was hard to believe with the evidence of condoms and drugs found at the scene. And a devotee of the swami also went on to charge him with rape and sexual abuse. Often regarded as God himself, Sathya Sai Baba was another spiritual leader caught up in sex scandals. Although his miracles led to him having millions of followers all across the globe, the godman was accused of heinous crimes like pedophilia and sex abuse. And it’s not just the godmen, even godwomen like the notorious Radhe Maa was also accused by television personality Dolly Bindra of forcing the latter to have sex with complete strangers. The question rises that with such hedonism displayed by these self-proclaimed godmen, do they really qualify as preachers of piousness and purity.
The short film‘ Beraks ’ is an example of such kind of sexual abuse met by an alleged Muslim sex worker, in the hands of a Hindu priest. A priest in any religion is a considered as a messenger of gods and goddesses. They are supposed to be above normal human indulgences and devote their time to the Almighty. But this short film shows you a darker side of a religious man. A Hindu priest worships the Goddess, but refuses to show the same respect to a virgin sex worker who is Muslim. It is even more shocking that the hymns sung for the religious deities does not affect him while he gives in to his gratification at the cost of the young girl. This movie will question you on the mentality of those who hold power in the house of God, that what leads them to abuse this power.
