, Hindustan Times
Mumbai, December 10, 2009
First Published:
11:00 IST(10/12/2009)
Last Updated:
18:09 IST(10/12/2009)
There’s a new show on TV and it takes you back to your past life, literally, through a therapy that is supposed to help you find a solution to the problems dogging you in this life. That’s Raaz Picchle Janam Ka for you, whose first episode aired on Monday.
But, if industry sources are to be believed, the reality show was not on the cards until two months back. In fact, rumours are that the reality show is responsible for pushing Rahul Dulhaniya Le Jayega, the sequel to Rakhi Ka Swayamvar that features Rahul Mahajan, to early next year.
“Rahul Dulhaniya Le Jayega was never slotted for December. I agree there was a buzz that the show could start in December, but there’s a lot that needs to be done on it before it goes on air,” explains Shailaja Kejriwal of the channel, adding that the initial promos were just to call in the entries from prospective brides and the video is meant to add to the buzz. “The show should begin only early next year because we will start shooting for it this month. There has to be a considerable gap between two seasons of a show. The girls had to be short-listed and groomed before we began shooting for the show,” she says, “That process takes a lot of time and energy. Meanwhile, we needed to keep non-fiction shows breathing on our channel. Raaz… was always planned for this period.”
But wasn’t Raaz Pichhle Janam Ka a risk? Kejriwal believes that it’s more of an experiment than a risk. “We have to consistently come up with different content and by different we don’t mean copied or adapted formats. Those are good but they should not become the order of the day. This was an original format and a good one at that. We didn’t mind the plunge,” she reveals.
The show is expected to go on for a maximum of eight weeks, with five episodes every week. Initially, buzz was that it would be a 26 week-long show with one episode per week. But Kejriwal refutes the rumour: “No non-fiction show should go on for more than eight weeks, which is the maximum period for such shows. This one, if it works well, might come back in a second edition too.”
Rumours are rife that Sushmita Sen and Sanjay Dutt had been approached to participate on the show and that the episode shot with Shahid Kapoor’s mother, Neelima Azeem, might not be shown at all, because it doesn’t have enough meat. But, the channel chose not to respond to these queries. Well, we just have to wait and watch as these secrets are unravelled in the coming weeks.
All about past life regression therapy
It uses hypnosis to dig into the memories of what most practitioners believe are people’s past lives or incarnations. Practitioners use a string of questions and suggestions, generally beginning with “Look at your feet. Where are you standing?” to promote recall. This therapy is mentioned in the yoga sutras of Patanjali that were written in 2 BC. The concept of Past Life Regression gained popularity in the West in the 1950s when an American housewife, recounted the alleged memories of a 19th-century Irish woman named Bridey Murphy.
Who needs this therapy? According to most clinical psychologists and Past Life Regression Therapy practitioners, people with strange phobias, anxieties and with unresolved and unaccounted for problems in their current lives need this therapy that helps them to go deep into their past to find an answer to the questions they face today. For instance, one could be petrified of heights for no clear reason, or have recurring dreams of drowning or simply hate someone for no reason. Some practitioners also believe that extremely restless minds, skeptics and those who aren’t peaceful in their mind need this therapy. People with schizophrenia, arthiritis or people who’ve suffered a stroke or have a weak heart are not advised this therapy.
‘No one can fool a therapist’ Dr Trupti Jayin on the procedure of Past Life Regression
Accessing past life The induction process involves a series of steps which extend from 40 minutes to two hours depending upon the subject. This is followed by progressive relaxation after which one can be led into visualisation. When the conscious mind switches off, one can access the sub-conscious, which stores memories. Conscious state I have to ensure that the subject doesn’t go off to sleep with the given amount of relaxation. When there’s no movement of the eyes, I know they’re in deep sleep. Otherwise, their eyes generally move and their lids flutter as if they were watching something with their eyes closed.
Fool-proof? I don’t think anyone can fool a therapist by saying things consciously. In the first episode of Raaz Picchle Janam Ka, the girl, Swati Singh, couldn’t have conjured up the details she gave about a person she had never met, a seat number she had never seen. She had never heard about the incident or anything associated with it. No one can fool a therapist. They’re cheating themselves if they’re doing that.
Does it fail? Regression fails when the subject becomes too resistant or is scared to try the therapy out. It also fails when they don’t believe what they see and wake up in the middle of the course. They just can’t fathom what they see. When a subject can’t disconnect from his or her materialistic surroundings is also when the therapy doesn’t succeed.
Celebrities and their past lives
Shekhar Suman This actor-politician went through a roller-coaster ride on the show to discover that he was a soldier in 1873, who lost his life fighting. He apparently even found reasons for certain complications in his current life.
Monica Bedi This actor was a Portuguese woman, who was a mother of three children, two daughters and a son. She was a self-sacrificing mother. She’s had the same mother in both her lives and has also met her husband from the past life in this ‘janam’.
Celina Jaitly This light-eyed ex-Miss India was a happily married woman in the US. She had a peaceful life. She had her own turmoil but nothing that she felt was earth-shattering.
Sambhavna Seth She was an uneducated Muslim girl. The actor-dancer found that she was a five-time namazi and strictly followed her religion. She also discovered that her uncle had killed her because he wanted to take advantage of her.