“Doing time, Doing Vipassana” is the extraordinary documentary about the introduction of the ancient meditation Vipassana as a method of rehabilitation for inmates at the infamous Tihar Central Prison in New Delhi. Brilliantly scripted and vividly filmed, the powerful film is proof that this form of meditation verifiably produces results in the inmates who practice it.
The documentary begins with a brief introduction to India, giving a sense of population and subsequent need for mammoth jails like Tihar. Ten thousand prisoners reside, with 9,000 of those awaiting trial in this congested, dilapidated prison.
The film then introduces Kiran Bedi, the vibrant female warden and the force behind the inception of Vipassana in the jail system. Her assiduous effort to bring change to Tihar lead her to try Vipassana.
The story culminates in the scenes of a 10-day Vipassana course in April 1994 where more than 1,000 inmates participated. Despite huge security risks and an intense rainstorm, the course was a success.
The transformational course requires complete silence throughout. The first three days of the course, the inmates are instructed to concentrate only on their own breathing. Around the fourth day, they often feel a rush of emotions ranging from rage to fear. Around the seventh day, they begin to be able to separate themselves from these emotions and gain an objective perspective on their past actions. It is here that rehabilitation begins to take place. Many of the inmates interviewed said that for the first time, they could see the pain they had caused others and felt remorse for doing so.
“Doing Time” is short — only 52 minutes — but that’s because it is only an invitation to learn more about Vipassana and its revolutionary affect on the inmates of Tihar and its ability to help prison systems everywhere. India has already begun opening Vipassana programs in its other jails.
The proof of the power of Vipassana is best told not in the narration, but in the faces of the prisoners after they break silence for the first time upon finishing the 10-day course. The tears of joy running down the face of an inmate as he embraces his captor is enough to send chills down your spine and put hope into your heart.
Vipassana, which means “to see things as they really are,” is taught in more than 50 centers around the world. One would hope that Vipassana really is the much-needed solution that the troubled prison system has long been searching for.
“Doing Time, Doing Vipassana” will be shown at the Bijou April 22 and 23 at 1:00 p.m. matinees. The charge is a $3-5 sliding scale.