''Prem Sanyas'' (''The Light of Asia'') (''Die Leuchte Asiens'' in German) is a 1925 silent film, directed by

Franz Osten Franz Osten (23 December 1876 in Munich – 2 December 1956) was a Bavaria, Bavarian filmmaker who along with Himansu Rai was among the first retainers of Bombay Talkies. Osten partnered with Rai on a number of India's earliest blockbuster film ...

and Himansu Rai. It was adapted from the book, ''

The Light of Asia ''The Light of Asia'', or ''The Great Renunciation'' (''Mahâbhinishkramana''), is a book by Sir Edwin Arnold. The first edition of the book was published in London in July 1879. In the form of a narrative poem, the book endeavours to describ ...

'' (1879) in

verse Verse may refer to: Poetry * Verse, an occasional synonym for poetry * Verse, a metrical structure, a stanza * Blank verse, a type of poetry having regular meter but no rhyme * Free verse, a type of poetry written without the use of strict me ...

, by

Edwin Arnold Sir Edwin Arnold KCIE CSI (10 June 183224 March 1904) was an English poet and journalist, who is most known for his work ''The Light of Asia''.Siddhartha Gautama Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in Lu ...

, who founded

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

by becoming the Buddha or the "

Enlightened Enlightened may refer to: * ''Enlightened'' (TV series), an American comedy-drama * ''Enlightened'' (album), 2007, by Dynamic Duo * The Enlightened, a faction in ''Ingress'' (video game) See also * Enlightened self-interest, a philosophy in et ...

one".

Production

The film was an Indo-European co-production, with German technicians and Indian actors, and it managed to steer clear of the usual exotic depiction of Indian culture favoured by western filmmakers up until then. It was made with the cooperation of the

Maharajah Mahārāja (; also spelled Maharajah, Maharaj) is a Sanskrit title for a "great ruler", "great king" or " high king". A few ruled states informally called empires, including ruler raja Sri Gupta, founder of the ancient Indian Gupta Empire, an ...

Jaipur Jaipur (; Hindi Language, Hindi: ''Jayapura''), formerly Jeypore, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Rajasthan. , the city had a pop ...

and contained a cast of thousands. Shooting took place in

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...

, in what is now

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

, where the set decoration was created by Devika Rani, the wife of actor/director

Himanshu Rai Himanshu Rai (1892 – 16 May 1940), one of the pioneers of Indian cinema, is best known as the founder of the studio in 1934, along with Devika Rani. He was associated with a number of movies, including ''Goddess'' (1922), ''The Light of Asia ...

and a noted actress herself. The film was released in the USA by the Film Arts Guild on 11 May 1928.

Synopsis

Seeta Devi and Himansu Rai in Prem Sanyas (1)

A tale from

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

about the origin of the Buddha, ''Prem Sanyas'' depicts the story of Prince Siddhartha Gautama (portrayed by director Himansu Rai), the man who became the Buddha, as he journeys from privilege and seclusion to awareness of the inevitability of life's suffering, finally renouncing his kingdom to seek enlightenment.

Restoration and release

The film was restored by Arte, and released in 2001.‘A Throw of Dice’ and Summer Serials
''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', 15 July 2008.

Cast

* Seeta Devi: ''Gopa'' * Himansu Rai: ''

Gautama Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in Lu ...

'' *

Sarada Ukil Sarada Charan Ukil (14 November 1888 – 21 July 1940) was a Bengali actor and artist, known for his role in the movie Prem Sanyas, "The Light of Asia", under the German director Franz Osten.Sarada Ukil: Profile of a Pioneer. Satyasri Ukil, Mukul ...

: '' King Suddhodhana'' *

Rani Bala ''Rani'' in Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia, sometimes spelled ''Ranee'', is a Hindu/Sanskrit feminine given name. The term is the female form of the term for princely rulers in South and Southeast Asia and applies equally to the wife of a ...

: ''

Queen Maya Queen Māyā of Shakya ( sa, मायादेवी, pi, Māyādevī) was the birth mother of Gautama Buddha, the sage on whose teachings Buddhism was founded. She was sister of Mahāpajāpatī Gotamī, the first Buddhist nun ordained by the ...

'' * Profulla Roy

References

External links

*
Spicevienna.org
''Prem Sanyas''
Short extract on Youtube
{{Authority control 1925 films German black-and-white films Films of the Weimar Republic Films about Gautama Buddha German silent feature films Indian silent films Films directed by Franz Osten Films based on poems Articles containing video clips