The Messenger Of Evil - Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, 50

For rearing a sordid cult of crime, sexual violence and ill-gotten wealth until the law caught up with him

- Asit Jolly

Hamein maarna apne aap ko maarne ke barabar hai (to kill me is akin to killing yourself).’ The menacing tagline of the Dera Sacha Sauda chief’s cinematic debut, MSG: The Messenger of God, in January 2015, was meant to be a warning: “Don’t mess with me!” Years before that, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh had mockingly said to a young sadhvi after he raped her: “There is no doubt that I am God.” It took 15 years, over 200 court hearings and the determination of two women (his own followers; one a minor) to bring down Singh, the unquestioned lord of 70 million doting adherents and a sprawling empire, the worth of which is still to be properly assessed.