Paul Saltzman went to India after getting dumped and wound up spending a week with The Beatles. He watched them write songs, took dozens of intimate photos and forgot about them for 30+ years.
If you like this one, check out The 10 Best Documentaries on The Beatles. And a shout-out to Andy Meek’s “5 must-watch documentaries that aren’t available on Netflix for putting this one on our radar.
Trailer for “Meeting the Beatles in India”
You Can’t Make This Sh!t Up
- Paul Saltzman went to India after getting dumped—and accidentally landed at the same ashram as The Beatles. They wouldn’t let him in. He waited outside for eight days. Soon he was hanging out with John, Paul, George and Ringo.
- The Beatles spent about seven weeks there and wrote as many as 48 songs—many for “The White Album.”
- John Lennon wrote “The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill” about a guest who killed a tiger. More than 50 years later, Saltzman tracked down the real “Bungalow Bill” in Hawaii.
Watch “Meeting the Beatles in India”
You can find the latest streaming options for “Meeting the Beatles in India” on Prime Video.
Ratings:
- My Rating: 90/100
- IMDB Rating: 6.7/10
- Rotten Tomatoes Ratings: not yet rated (Users); 100/100 (Critics)
Director’s Note: Paul Saltzman directed this 82-minute documentary—and he’s also the guy at the center of the story.
That makes this different from most Beatles docs. Saltzman isn’t piecing together somebody else’s memories. He was actually there in Rishikesh in 1968, sitting with The Beatles, listening to them work on songs and photographing them.
Morgan Freeman provides some narration, while director David Lynch served as an executive producer and appears in the film discussing Transcendental Meditation.
Release Date: September 9, 2020 (virtual world premiere)
Other Unique Stuff
- Prudence Farrow’s intense meditation habits inspired John Lennon to write “Dear Prudence.” She was Mia Farrow’s sister and was staying in the same celebrity section of the retreat.
- One of Saltzman’s most famous photographs shows John Lennon with a finger to his ear. Cynthia Lennon later called it the best photograph she’d seen of John from his Beatles years.
- This wasn’t sanctioned by Apple Corps. That means it doesn’t have the normal luxury of Beatles songs playing throughout or fresh interviews with Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr. Instead, Saltzman’s photographs and firsthand stories have to carry it.
Wrap Up:
“Meeting the Beatles in India” works because Saltzman was a heartbroken kid who accidentally landed in the middle of Beatles history.
Thanks for reading!
Heather Fenty, Guest Writer, Daily Doc