Cinema hall, movie sets - A filmy side of Ram Rahim's empire

Sirsa (Har) : The jazzy side of the Dera chief is on full display at the sect headquarters which houses a cinema hall that exclusively shows Gurmeet Ram Rahim’s movies and a film set where the self-styled godman’s upcoming flick ‘Online Gurukul’ was being shot till some days back.

Ram Rahim’s few movies including ‘MSG – Messenger of God’, ‘MSG 2’, ‘Jattu Engineer’ and ‘Hind ka Napak ko Jawab’- have all been shot at the indoor and outdoor film sets at the sect headquarters. The Dera chief’s upcoming movie – ‘Online Gurukul’ – was currently being shot while another based on his biography was in the pipeline.

A Dera supporter, employed at the sect headquarters, said Ram Rahim had two film sets – indoor and outdoor – on the premises of the dera headquarters for shooting his movies. “Around 70 per cent of baba’s movies were shot at the campus of Dera headquarters. As per the script’s requirement, schools and colleges located on the campus, would also be used for shooting movies,” another Dera supporter, who did not wish to be named, said.

He said when the Dera chief’s movie was released on the big screen, a message was sent to his followers across the country, asking them to watch the film in theatres in their respective areas. Apart from the movie, the sect chief, who was awarded 20 -year jail term in two sexual exploitation cases yesterday, is also known for his love for luxury cars. Around four-five luxury cars of the same colour were part of his cavalcade and no one would know in which car he would be travelling.

In Ram Rahim’s security, women guards were also deployed. A large number of followers have left the sect headquarters but around 1000 supporters are still inside, according to authorities.