Sr.Rani Maria Documentary Film

Documentary about Sr. Rani Mariya. Rani Maria Vattali, who was stabbed to death in 1995 in Madhya Pradesh, was declared 'Blessed', a sacred title in the Roman Catholic church order.

How Sister Rani Maria’s family pardoned her killer

In 1992, Samandar Singh was a 28-year-old ordinary villager?making a living by farming and doing odd jobs when Sr Rani, professed sister of the Franciscan Clarist Congregation, was posted in Udianagar, around an hour’s drive from Indore. She was in the general vicinity of Singh’s village and worked with the tribal and Dalit communities in Bijnor (Uttar Pradesh) and Satna (MP). She conducted camps informing them about government subsidies and loans and in the process, antagonised the money lenders. On February 25, 1995, Singh stabbed Sister Rani Maria to death. He was caught and sentenced for the crime but Sister Rani Maria's younger sister, Sister Selmy Paul did the unthinkable. She forgave her sister's killer and gave him a new lease of life.

Beatification of Sister Rani Maria

The beatification process opened on 26 September 2003 after the title Servant of God was conferred upon her and the Congregation for the Causes of Saints granted the "nihil obstat" ('nothing against') to the cause. The subsequent diocesan process took place in Indore from 29 June 2005 to 28 June 2007 and received C.C.S. validation in Rome on 27 November 2009.

The C.C.S. received the Positio in 2014 and passed it onto consulting theologians who – on 11 February 2016 – voiced their approval to the cause. The C.C.S. later approved this on 21 March 2017. Pope Francis approved the cause on 23 March 2017 and confirmed that Vattalil would be beatified on 4 November 2017 in Indore.

The postulator assigned to the cause at present is Fra Giovangiuseppe Califano.

Death and Funeral of Sr. Rani Maria

Sister Rani Maria Vattalil was murdered in a knife attack due to the hitman Samandar Singh at Nachanbore Hill in Indore on 25 February 1995 while she made her way to Indore in a bus; she had 40 major injuries besides 14 bruises and unto the last breath said: "Jesus!" repeatedly. The murder was arranged because some landlords were offended due to her work among the landless poor.

On 25 February 1995 she woke up early for breakfast after having gone to the chapel prior to anyone else joining her there. She and two other religious reached the bus stand to be told that the bus trip was cancelled. The trio decided to return to the convent when they saw the bus with the name 'Kapil' which was the one that she was to travel on. Sister Liza Rose asked if the conductor could reserve a seat for Rani Maria to which the conductor allowed. Sister Liza Rose helped her into the bus and bade her farewell.

But a man dressed in white kept her bag near the driver and asked her to sit in the back which was something unusual in the town since the nuns were given front seats whenever in public transport. Vattalil agreed where she was seated with three men who had the intention of killing her. The leader - Jeevan Singh - sat with his guard Dharmendra and Samundar Singh. Jeevan began insulting her before Samundar rose from his seat and asked the driver to stop the bus. Singh broke a coconut against a rock on the road's side and entered the bus distributing the pieces to the passengers. He offered one to her but withdrew it to make a fool out of her before drawing a knife and stabbing her in the stomach. He continued to stab her and dragged her out of the bus - it had stopped at this stage - and continued stabbing her. The passengers were too wrought with fear to intervene with some fleeing the scene in panic.

The police at 10:45am contacted the nuns to inform them of what had happened and to tell them that their slain sister's remains were still on the side of the road. The distraught nuns contacted the Bishop of Indore George Anathil to inform him of what had happened before Anathil and some priests reached the spot at 2:00pm to find her bloodied corpse which was taken to the episcopal residence to be cleaned and laid in state.

Blessed Mariam Vattalil

Blessed Mariam Vattalil (29 January 1954 – 25 February 1995) - in religious Rani Maria - was an Indian Syro Malabar professed religious and a social worker in the Franciscan Clarist Congregation who worked among the poor within the Diocese of Indore. Vattalil dedicated herself to the catechetical formation and educational instruction during her time as a religious as she moved place to place teaching in different areas; she was vocal in matters of social justice and in social activism which led to her death at the hands of those who were opposed to her efforts in aiding the poor and downtrodden.

Her cause of canonization commenced in 2003 and she was titled as a Servant of God. Her beatification received approval from Pope Francis on 23 March 2017 and she was beatified in Indore on 4 November 2017