Henry Sugar (Benedict Cumberbatch) is the pseudonym of a miserly bachelor who uses his inherited fortune to fund his gambling habits. Henry is 41 years old who inherited his fortune from his rich father. He was too selfish to share the fortune with anyone, hence never married. He had a taste for clothes, was tall, but not particularly handsome. He drove a Ferrari, which cost the same as a country cottage.
Henry just wanted to make himself richer. Some buys stocks and share. Some buy art or diamonds. Some gamble. Henry was a gambler and not above cheating.Henry visited his friend William W and spent time at his library, which was filled with leather bound volumes of books from floor to ceiling. Henry notices a particular book in the collection, which looked out of place.He comes across a book of a doctor ZZ Chatterjee's (Dev Patel) 1935 report of Imdad Khan (Ben Kingsley), a man who claimed he could see and interact without using his eyes.
Imdad announced himself to Dr Chatterjee on 2nd Dec 1935, in Calcutta, and asked to be subjected to any manner of tests to validate his claim. Imdad was 61 years old, with white hair and a white mustache.
Imdad says that he travels with a circus and every time the circus visits a new town, He undergoes the same test at the biggest hospital of that town.
Chatterjee glues Imdad's eyelids and then covers it with dough and then bandages the entire face to make sure Imdad cannot see anything. Imdad walks confident out of the hospital and in to the streets. Imdad took a bicycle and rode away.After watching Imdad perform even greater feats in his own circus act, the doctor interviewed Imdad, and he tells him his life history. Imdad was born in Kashmir in 1873. In 1886, Imdad joined the circus and saved Rs 3000. As a young runaway in a traveling circus, he sought out a guru known as The Great Yogi (Richard Ayoade), who could meditate while levitating his own body. Imdad traveled to the town near the Ganges and hired a horse cart to travel to the jungle. His travelling companion turned out to be a disciple of the Yogi. The disciple disappeared once he learned that Imdad was seeking the Yogi, but Imdad had kept an eye on him and followed him through the jungle. Eventually, Imdad reaches a clearing with 2 huts in it.Imdad hid in a tree and saw the Yogi levitate with his own eyes. Imdad reveals himself to the Yogi. Yogi wanted to fling a brick at Imdad, but is immediately remorseful at his actions.
Reluctantly, he taught him his meditation method, which gained Imdad his abilities. Imdad was 17 years old when he started mediating. In 5 years, he was able to concentrate for 1.5 minutes. By 1907, when he was 34 years old. He could concentrate for 3 minutes without wandering his mind. By this time, he could start to visualize the outline of objects in front of him, without opening his eyes. For the next 8 years Imdad perfected his technique to read playing cards, charts and maps by keeping himself blindfolded. By 1915, he had perfected it.
But the public never believed him.Though Imdad died overnight before the doctors could further study him. Chatterjee saw Imdad as a medical miracle. Imdad could lead to blind gaining sight, or the deaf hearing. The possibilities were endless.
Chatterjee carefully recorded everything Imdad said and bound it into a book for safe keeping.By practicing Imdad's meditations for three years Henry manages to see through playing cards. Henry follows Imdad's instructions perfectly and makes much more rapid progress. He gradually reduces the time needed to read through cards from 1 minute to 5 seconds.
Henry uses these abilities at a casino and makes £30,000 at blackjack. Henry learns how to lose occasionally so as not to attract attention of the patrons.Henry got back home and suddenly realize that he did not want all this money that he had earned so easily. He could be the richest man in the world if he wanted.
Unsatisfied with his ease in earning money, he throws them off his balcony into the streets of London. Since he nearly caused a riot, the police suggest that he find a more legal form of charity like giving it to an orphanage or a charity.He decides to travel worldwide, winning money with his abilities under varying disguises and to establishing a network of successful hospitals and orphanages. Within a year he had already won 120 million pounds. Henry accumulated all the money in Switzerland, which was tax free.
Two decades later, Henry dies at the age of 63 from a pulmonary embolism which he knew would cause his death. He had accumulated 644 million pounds. He had left behind 21 well established children's hospitals and orphanages all over the world. His accountant John Winston commissions Roald Dahl (Ralph Fiennes) to write on his story under the pseudonym Henry Sugar.
Roald completed the story in 1976. IMDb