Tirumalai Krishnamacharya was 50 when this film was made and is arguably the most influential yogi in establishing what yoga has become today. His students include Pattabhi Jois the founder of Asthanga yoga, BKS Iyengar, Indra Devi, and his son Desikachar. Most of todays leading yogis have studied under one or more of Krishnamacharya students. Krishnamacharya was born in 1888 in a remote Indian village and lived to be over 100 years old until his death in 1989. He is known as not only as a most influential yoga teacher, but a scholar, and a healer. Krishnamacharya was known to be able to voluntarily stop his visible heart beat/ pulse for over two minutes, probably by drastically reducing venous return to the heart.