Critically acclaimed director Vanessa Engle has spent the last three years putting this film together in order to expose the extraordinary tale of a bizarre cult which came to light back in 2013 after a sensational news story broke. It involved three women who emerged from a small flat located in Brixton, south London, after being held captive for decades.

This cult can be traced back to the 1970s when it’s leader Aravindan Balakrishnan, who was a student at the time, formed a small political sect. He believed in an international communist revolution and therefore wanted to follow in the teachings of China’s Chairman Mao.

The Cult Next Door includes exclusive interviews with two of the women who managed to escape, these are Aisha Wahab, who is a 72 year old Malaysian woman and Katy Morgan-Davies, Balakrishnan’s daughter, who was brought up in captivity. This film provides an excellent vantage to see how this small left-wing group managed to evolve into a crazy cult.