Mahapurush


Mahapurush, or The Holy Man, is a 1965 film directed by Satyajit Ray, based on a short story Birinchibaba by Rajshekhar Basu.

Plot

After the death of his wife, Gurupada Mitra, an advocate, has not been at peace. He and his daughter Buchki, meet Birinchi. Birinchi Baba claims to be ageless. He tells stories from the past; about his arguments with 'Plato' about time, how he taught E=mc2 to Einstein, and was on first-name terms with Jesu and Gautam. Birinchi Baba has a growing band of rich devotees.
Gurupada decides to patronize the holy man and become his disciple. Daughter Buchki is disappointed with her lover Satya. To teach him a lesson, she tells Satya that she is going to leave him and become a disciple of Birinchi Baba.
Satya turns to his friend Nibaran for his help. It does not take Nibaran long to realize that Birinchi Baba is a fraud. Nibaran and friends expose Birinchi Baba. The devotees feel foolish and perhaps have learnt a lesson.

Cast

The Academy Film Archive preserved Mahapurush in 2005.