At the peak of his Bollywood career, Vinod Khanna shocked fans by walking away from fame and success to follow spiritual guru Osho. Decades later, his second wife, Kavita Khanna, shared rare and deeply personal thoughts about that phase of his life in a video posted on her YouTube channel.From the moment we met Production Khanna to his spiritual devotion, the trauma of leaving the Osho commune and his later faith in Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Kavita offered an unfiltered account of the actor’s inner journey.
‘My flowers never die’: Kavita Khanna on meeting Vinod Khanna
Recalling their first meeting in 1989, Kavita said it was Vinod Khanna’s 43rd birthday party, though they barely spoke that night.“We met in 1989 and it was Vinod’s 43rd birthday party at his house. And I didn’t speak to him during the evening.
And then, when we were leaving, my friends and I, Vinod came to see us off at the door, to the elevator,” she said.Describing the moment she remembers, she added: “There were bunches of flowers all the way up and down the stairs. So I asked, what are you going to do with all your flowers? And he said, ‘I’m going to keep them.’
And he just looked at me and said my flowers never die.”Kavita felt it reflected his spiritual nature. “I think it was Vinoda’s gardener because he was Osho’s gardener. He was very spiritual from childhood.”
From Fame to Sannyasa: Why Vinod Khanna Turned to Osho
Kavita said that Vinod’s spiritual curiosity started early. “When he was 17 years old and he bought Autobiography of a Yogi. And then he said he didn’t realize it at the time, but Osho was in the bookstore at the same time.”She explained that the turning point was a series of personal losses. “The turning point… from giving up this incredible material life that he had, from the adoration that he had, from adulation and success, was that within two years there were several deaths in the family. When his mother died, he just went to Osho, took sannyasa.”She described his seva at the commune, saying, “Vinod was Osho’s gardener…if you were a gardener, you were there in his garden.
But it was his seva.”
Life inside the commune and the chaos that followed
Kavita talked at length about the intensity of life in the Osho commune, especially in Oregon, where Vinod was deeply immersed.“There were some courses that Vynod was allowed to attend that were only for foreigners who were there. And they were group meetings,” she said, adding that the spiritual practice was extremely physical.She also recalled a darker turn of events. “They built the city and I think they wanted to win the election…
they had their own army… no one could understand what was going on.’Addressing Osho’s secretary, she said: “I believe that Sheila was… a bully. And then there was this whole story about the poisoning of the water supply.”One of Vinod’s deepest pains, she revealed, was separation from his children. “He didn’t see his children. And he was telling me that he would just cry and not be able to go back to India.”
‘Very, very traumatised’: Vinod Khanna after leaving Osho
Kavita said Vinod left Oregon before it all came crashing down, but the emotional impact stayed with him.“When he left Oregon, he was very, very, very traumatized,” she said, adding that it even affected him professionally. “He told me he’d go on set, shoot an amazing shot, get back in his van, and then cry and cry.”She said Vinod never returned to the Pune ashram or met Osho, except for one final interaction.
“Osho told Vinod that I want you to be in charge of the ashram now in Pune. And Vinod said that for the first and only time I said no to my guru.”
“This is the Guru for you”: Vinod Khanna and Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Kavita recalled how Vinod later referred her to Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar. “He looked at it and said, Kavita, this is the Guru for you. Don’t miss this time.”She described a moment at a private satsang that moved her deeply. “Gurudev said that Vinod had no questions… Vinod immediately understood who and what this presence was.
He knew there was a point.”
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Diagnosis of lung cancer and “complete treatment”
In 2001, Vinod Khanna was diagnosed with lung cancer. “He used to smoke between 40 and 80 cigarettes a day,” Kavita said, adding that doctors had advised him to remove half of his lung.They sought Gurudev’s blessings, after which Vinod postponed the surgery and concentrated on breathing and Sudarshan Kriya. “There was no cancer. It was just unbelievable. There was no cancer,” she said.Even international doctors were stunned. “They just couldn’t take it…
they said there was a complete, complete cure.’
Bladder cancer and faith to the end
Many years later, Vinod was diagnosed with bladder cancer. Kavita said the prognosis was bleak. “There was a 25% chance he would be alive in two years.”Vynod chose a path guided by faith. “He said … I’ve lived a full life. And if it’s my time to go, I’m ready to go.”After treatment and Panch Karma the cancer disappeared again. “The cancer is gone… we did a scan there and it’s gone,” she said.Although the disease later returned, Kavita said Vinod’s faith never wavered. “He had complete faith in Gurudev until his last conversation.”Concluding her thoughts, she added, “It was straight from the heart… I am truly grateful to him for bringing me to Gurudev.”
