After arriving in India, a 20-year-old Australian woman (Kate Winslet), falls under the influence of an Indian Guru, and joins his cult. P.J. Waters (Harvey Keitel), an American deprogrammer, is hired by her family to bring her back home. Under the impression that her father has died the woman returns home and Walters begins to recondition her. But she is not easily convinced by his methods of persuasion. As the two battle over spirituality and the mind, Waters starts to question his own beliefs, and slowly becomes attracted to her.