Films on the Subject of Peace (4); Meeting The Beatles in IndiaHiroshima for Global Peace

Films on the Subject of Peace (4); Meeting The Beatles in India

#peacetimes

The team at Johakyu, which operates Hatchoza and Salon Cinema in Naka-ku, Hiroshima-shi, cinemas that screen over 200 films a year, is sharing their recommendations of films on the subject of peace that everyone should watch.

Meeting The Beatles in India is a documentary film that follows the untold story of The Beatles’ stay in India. It will be available in the Hatchoza theater on October 21st, 2022.

　At the age of 26 in 1968, Film Director Paul Saltzman visited an Ashram (monastery) on the banks of the Ganges River to heal the wounds of heartbreak, where he met The Beatles members who were learning meditation. Having taken many photos that captured the days he spent with them, in this film, Director Paul Saltzman has revisited the place filled with their memories together and given us a glimpse of their true face alongside the valuable testimony of those involved.

　At the time, the world was in fear because of the Vietnam War, the escalation of the Civil Rights Movement in the US, and the fear of nuclear war due to the Cold War. As they were reaching the peak of their popularity at the time, The Beatles committed to the Transcendental Meditation movement, which explored inner peace, and was invited to India by the founder of the movement, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.

　Each member restored peace and harmony deep inside through meditation. Maharishi’s teachings aimed to build world peace through the inner spiritual world, and they had a lot of impact on The Beatles’ creative activities. It is said that many of the songs in The Beatles (commonly known as the White Album)—their representative album and masterpiece—were created here.

　“All of our songs are anti-war,” said John Lennon. Even without loudly singing anti-war songs, The Beatles advocated for peace in the world by singing about love. as the Vietnam War bogged down, they wrote All You Need Is Love, where they repeatedly sang that “All you need is love.” This song celebrates the power of love and its message echoed in the hearts of young people.

　Meeting The Beatles in India tells an interesting story of the members of The Beatles—which was already a world-renowned band at the time—as they learned meditation far away, deep in the mountains of India, and freely worked on their creative activities while casually talking to young foreigners that they met for the first time. In the unsettling atmosphere surrounding the world due to recent events, this film may be a good reminder for people all over the world to share a sense of solidarity for the love of humanity deep inside and have a positive attitude toward life.

■Title: Meeting The Beatles in India

■Nationwide roadshow release starting from September 23rd, 2022 (Friday, holiday)

Hatchoza: from October 21st, 2022

Director/Scriptwriter/Producer: Paul Saltzman　

Narrator: Morgan Freeman

Executive Producer: David Lynch

Cast: David Lynch, Pattie Boyd、Jenny Boyd, Mark Lewisohn、Lewis Lapham, Laurence Rosenthal, Rikki Cook、Hariprasad Chaurasia, Devyani Saltzman

2020/Canada/English/79 minutes/Color/1.78:1/5.1ch

Original title: Meeting The Beatles in India　

Subtitles: Onishi Kimiko, Subtitles supervised by: Fujimoto Kunihiko

Distributor: Mimosa Films　

Official website: http://mimosafilms.com/beatles/