Siddhartha

Siddhartha (1972)

Siddhartha is the story of a young Brahmin and his search for a meaningful way of life. His journey takes him through periods of harsh asceticism, sensual pleasures, material wealth, self-revulsion and eventually to the oneness and harmony that he had been seeking. The story is based on the best-selling novel by German Nobel Prize winner Hermann Hesse.

Date of release
1972-08-01
TMDB
6.0 / 10 (23)
Runtime
1h 23m
Genres
Drama, Mystery
Director
Conrad Rooks

Casting

Interesting facts

  • Based on: Siddhartha

Siddhartha is a 1972 Indo-American drama film based on the 1922 novel of the same name by Hermann Hesse. Produced, written and directed by Conrad Rooks, it stars Shashi Kapoor as Siddhartha, with Simi Garewal as courtesan Kamala in lead roles, with Romesh Sharma, Pinchoo Kapoor and Zul Vellani in supporting roles. The film follows a young Brahmin's spiritual quest for self-knowledge and enlightenment as he moves through asceticism, worldly wealth, sensual love and renunciation.

Production

Rooks was first introduced to Hermann Hesse's novel Siddhartha by his then wife, Zina Rachevsky, who later became a Tibetan Buddhist nun. He began developing an adaptation of the novel during the late 1960s. In 1967, an early version was described as a "drama-documentary", with Rooks considering a cast that included Peter Fonda, John Drew Barrymore and Orson Welles.In 1968, producer Walter Reade Jr.

For the title role of Siddhartha was first offered to Amitabh Bachchan, while Rekha was considered for the role of Kamala. Rooks wanted Bachchan to be available continuously for several months, however Bachchan declined because of his existing film commitments. Shashi Kapoor was ultimately cast as Siddhartha opposite Simi Garewal as Kamala.

Bhanu Athaiya designed the costumes and jewellery for the film after research about the historical setting of the story.researching the historical setting

Principal photography of the film took place entirely on location in northern India in November 1971, with major parts being shot in Rishikesh and on the private estates and in the palaces of the Maharaja of Bharatpur, including Deeg Palace complex and its gardens,and also Keoladeo Bird Sanctuary at Bharatpur in Rajasthan.

Read on Wikipedia · Text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Data from Wikidata.

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