Aashram

Aashram is based on the lives of Asaram Bapu and Baba Gurmit Ram Rahim Singh Insaan.

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It is loosely based on the self-styled godman Gurmit Ram Rahim Singh Insaan.

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In 2013, Arjun Rampal had signed on to Prakash Jha's "Satsang". There were reports that it was based on the spiritual guru Asaram Bapu, and Prakash Jha denied these claims in the media. The film's script was not ready, and Prakash Jha restarted the film in 2017. Ajay Devgan and Amrita Rao were signed on, but Prakash Jha then decided to change the character and signed Bobby Deol instead. The project was finally made as "Ashram".

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It marked Bobby Deol's debut on the internet.

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It is the first web series directed by the legendary director Prakash Jha.

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Prakash Jha worked with Bobby Deol for the first time.

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In 2006, Rajkumar Santoshi planned to make a film titled 'Saamna' starring Ajay Devgn, Akshay Kumar, Nana Patekar and Ritesh Deshmukh. The film was based on fake godmen and blind faith, but it was shelved after the announcement. Its rights were later sold to Prakash Jha, who planned to make it as 'Satsang' in 2013, but the project never came to fruition.

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The entire series was shot during the peak of the winter season, when the weather in Ayodhya was extremely cold and foggy. Actors Anurita Jha, Tridha Choudhury and Parineeta Seth bravely shot their scenes in saris in the extreme cold, running to put on their warm jackets after every take.

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Aaditi Pohankar bravely learned wrestling at a training academy near Ayodhya for her role.

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The political rally scene, shot in the heart of Ayodhya, drew a large crowd of around 1,000 people. The whole city was decorated with posters of Sachin Shroff and Anil Rastogi, and some townspeople passing through the streets witnessed them standing and waving to the crowd with phool mala. This led people to believe that both of them had actually entered politics.

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The entire location where Aashram was shot was an abandoned fort. Director Prakash Jha obtained all the permission to repaint the location and made it resemble a real AASHRAM. Decorating the abandoned fort took 3-4 months and made it look more magnificent, and the colors for painting the building were chosen to suit the vibe of the series.

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Sachin Shroff kept the atmosphere on the film set at its best and distributed homemade sweets, including Gajar ka Halwa, to the entire cast.

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The scenes at Pammi's house were shot in a village near Ayodhya. Tushar Pandey, Aaditi and the crew enjoyed the especially rich milk-based dishes lovingly prepared by the villagers.

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Tushar Pandey's Shuddhikaran ritual scene was shot on the night they washed him with milk and water. He had to sit there bare-chested in the freezing cold. The production team made sure the water was warm for every take, but it was still very demanding.

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After wrapping up, the whole group, including Bobby Deol, Darshan Kumar, Adhyayan Suman, Tushar Pandey, Chandan Roy Sanyal and Tanmay Ranjan, would happily play cricket.

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Sangram Singh, the choreographer of the wrestling scenes, organized mandatory exercise sessions for Bobby and Aaditi after dinner.

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The shoot in Ayodhya took place during the winter season, when the actors and crew celebrated various festivals such as Diwali, New Year and Maker Sankranti, which lifted the mood on set.

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Darshan Kumar is extremely committed to his fitness regime. He never missed his workout no matter what. After wrapping up, he would always be found in the hotel gym. On set he also carried a resistance band with him and used it to stretch quickly between takes.

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When Bobby went to meet Prakash Jha, he thought it was for the role of a police officer. While listening to the narration, he hoped for the role of Baba. In the end, he was told it was actually the role of the villain.

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