AllMovie

The lines between reality, mysticism and the surreal are never clearly drawn in this romantic but intellectually challenging and arty Indian film, a first time effort from novelist Vijay Singh. Ostensibly a chronicle of a young writer's spiritual/romantic quest for his enigmatic soulmate, Singh's film offers a new look at East Indian myths and superstitions that simultaneously explores them objectively and seeks to prove them false. The tale begins in a Paris cemetery, the final resting place of surrealist author Andre Breton. There aspiring Indian author Nishant has come to reflect. Instead he finds the beautiful and strange Jaya, woman who claims a holy man back in India told her that during the 1920s she had been Nadja, the enigmatic young woman who inspired Breton's best known work. Intrigued Nishant moves to question her more closely, but Jaya simply disappears and Nishant is next seen in the Himalayas preparing to travel down the Ganges river, a sacred stream particularly loved by Jaya. Along the way he encounters Zehra, a dancer/prostitute who reminds him strongly of Jaya. Zehra is indeed his soul mate and a passionate affair commences that is later threatened when Jaya again comes to him in Benares, the sacred city where the fate of men and woman is decided.