Mahesh Bhatt mourns U.G. Krishnamurti's death

Producer-director Mahesh Bhatt is strangely quiet after the death of his mentor, guru and dear friend U.G. Krishnamurti.

"Since U.G. rejected divinity and didn't want to be remembered after his death, I see no point in talking about him when he's no more. It sort of defeats what he believed in," Bhatt told IANS.

"The story of U.G. is the story of an ordinary man who refused to be treated like god. He scoffed at the 'god factory' and repudiated the lies churned out in the lie factories that run civilisation," said Bhatt.

Bhatt spent 10 days in Italy with Krishnamurti just before his death.

"Those 10 days mean more to me in terms of experience and enrichment than the 30 years that I've known him. It'll take me more than a lifetime to sift through, understand and process the thoughts and opinions he shared with me during those days. It'll be a long time before I actually start talking about those glorious and heartbreaking days."

The veteran filmmaker cremated Krishnamurti on March 23.

"He gave me the responsibility to make sure he was allowed to die the way he wanted. And the greatest task I was given to perform was to cremate him. He died on a sunny afternoon in a villa in Vallecrosia in Italy. Only my two American friends and I were with him when the end came. He had asked all the others to leave," Bhatt added.