"Wait, you slept with the father AND the son?… And their guru!"
SYNOPSIS
Meet Tina. Hollywood glamour meets spiritual chic, she is a unique blend of generosity and self-indulgence. She flirts with life and believes that pleasure is her divine birthright - and yours too. She lives and dies by her heart, looks beyond, and never hesitates to act. Like a bonafide superhero!
Tina’s joie de vivre and lust for fun are only matched by her deep faith in a higher source. She is guided by Jeremie, a beloved spirit she met through a Ouija board in her early 20s. Their communication is sprinkled with misspellings, quibbles and wisecracks but always with genuine love for one another.
With Jeremie’s blessing, Tina embarks on a volunteer trip to Dharamsala, India, where she meets three young women: Sephie - a gentle free-spirit with a bleeding heart, Kate - a curious observer with a painful past, and Cordelia - an ambitious Brit with an unbending life plan. Their bond is instant, transcendent - and sometimes baffling. Could it be from a past life … or two? (It is. Tina’s sure.)
Tina’s history with India is decades-long and includes an impassioned relationship with a charismatic high-flying holy man - SG. His international lifestyle boasts a far-reaching circle of Hollywood celebrities, world leaders and questionable businessmen. Through flashbacks, we uncover the genesis of this relationship, laden with deep love, turmoil, and clandestine meetings. In the present day, their relationship comes with an unexpected surprise: knock, knock… FBI. What has SG gotten her into now? Thrust into crisis mode, Tina turns, as she always does, to her coven of close friends and her ever-present connection with Jeremie. She needs a criminal defense lawyer? And a burner phone? Meanwhile, the younger women are busy piecing together her intriguing past, appointing themselves unauthorized detectives into Tina’s history. Who exactly is Tina?
MAIN CHARACTERS
Tina is a middle-aged (...but what is age anyway?) spiritual hedonist from Manhattan who feels her way through life, invoking her spirit guides with whimsy and always packing her chakra balancing crystals for every grand adventure. Her mysterious past is wrapped in glamour and intrigue and harkens back to a jet-set life of parties, celebrity and endless riches. Under this eccentric and alluring veneer, she is a smart and witty woman, full of joie de vivre, a flair for the dramatic, and a yearning to take others along with her on a magical journey. With a knock on her door, Tina’s past and present collide and she summons her soul’s superpowers to illustrate - with gusto! - how to walk the talk of her unconventional spiritual beliefs.
Jeremie is a spirit guide Tina met through the Ouija board in her early 20s. Since that time, she has been teacher, mentor, and invisible supporter to Tina with her loving guidance – not to mention her poor spelling, wise cracks, and ever entertaining omniscience.
Sephie is a 19-year-old free-spirited California hippy of Latin/Native American heritage and a breath of fresh air. She seems to float through life with ease, attracting open doors wherever she goes, but her naivete sometimes makes her less than discerning. She often feels conflicted between her dreams to be a famous singer/songwriter and her save the world syndrome. Can she reconcile her strong ideals with the harsh realities of a messy world? Will she find a way to create the change without completely sacrificing herself? Meeting Tina will help her find balance.
Kate is 21 years old, fresh out of college, and stepping out into the “real world” for the first time. She leads with confidence, wit, and a sense of adventure. But underneath, she is timid and insecure - though she hides it well - and is constantly protecting herself from the world around her. She has a hard time believing that she is worthy of love and is terrified that she’ll never break free of old, painful emotional patterns. She has a sneaking suspicion that life can be more magical than she is allowing it to be and is ready for a fresh start, even if she has no idea how to go about creating it. Meeting Tina will open her mind and heart to a completely new worldview - but will she be able to find a way to trust it?
Cordelia is a 23-year-old Caribbean/African British woman, pursuing a graduate degree in business. She comes from a posh, privileged family in London, where her father holds a prestigious position at Lloyd’s of London - the first Caribbean person of colour to step into such a role. She is type A, ambitious and driven to equal - or surpass - her father’s success. She is wickedly funny and sarcastic. Sometimes uptight and inflexible, she loosens up after a cocktail or two, giving her liquid courage to question Tina’s unorthodox beliefs. She is confident that her five-year plan is viable, but how will she feel when a family secret derails her life?
Gigi is Tina’s best friend. A Brooklyn-born Pollyanna, she is the Frick to Tina’s Frack and the other set of hands on the ouija board. In lockstep with Tina on their spiritual journeys, she helps usher the young women down the same yellow brick road. She is a skilled Reiki master and has been married to two different cops.
Episode Concepts
Pilot: Episode 1
A CBI raid on SG’s ashram sets off a chain of events that will rock Tina’s world. Tina travels to Dharamsala, India for a volunteer program where she meets three young women: Sephie, Kate and Cordelia. They bond quickly over run-ins with swamis, bucket shower etiquette, and metaphysical musings at a hookah lounge. In flashback, a young Tina makes a bold leap when she accepts an invitation to India for the first time. The omniscient voice of Jeremie, a beloved spirit guide of Tina’s, narrates the journey.
Episode 2:
Tina inadvertently breaks a house rule and flirtatiously negotiates with Dev for leniency. The women attend their first day of volunteer placement and Sephie is devastated by the extreme poverty. Consoling Sephie, a shopping trip turns into an expedition over rooftops to procure some pot. A very stoned Tina divulges details of her Indian wedding.
Episode 3:
House Rules around alcohol are lifted for the celebration of Holi and the women indulge generously. Kate is triggered by a series of escalating events and erupts emotionally. The women attend a private (hungover) meeting with the Dalai Lama, arranged by SG, which stirs up memories for Tina.
Episode 4:
Tina bids the girls farewell with promises to reunite in NYC soon. They must meet Jeremie after all. In a Delhi hotel restaurant, she meets Pierre, a handsome Frenchman who sweeps her off her feet in two days of rapture. Not enough time, but arrives and SG awaits. Pierre and Tina will have to pick up at a later date.
Episode 5:
The women reunite in Tina’s Manhattan penthouse and finally experience Jeremie together. In flashback, a young Tina and Gigi meet Jeremie for the first time when a would-be ménage à trois is interrupted by a Ouija board.
Episode 6:
The reunion continues as the women connect more deeply with Jeremie and their spiritual guides. Cordelia is freaked out by the Ouija board and attempts to enjoy herself - until alcohol gets the best of her. A knock on the door leaves a shocked Tina breathless.
Episode 7:
Thrust into crisis mode, Tina assembles her A-team: Gigi, Lourdes, Dominique – who knew Tina would need criminal defense? - and Jeremie. Tina grapples with the emotion of it all and Jeremie reminds her where her power lies. She confronts SG.
Episode 8:
Ava stays with Tina on one of her numerous visits to New York from Belgium and Tina confides in her. The young women are mesmerized by her French accent, her young-at-heart vibe - and her joyful but ambivalent feelings toward Jeremie. As they continue to piece together Tina’s past, they sense a present-day crisis.
Episode 9:
Tina is planning her big 50th birthday bash and really wants the younger women there. To her delight, they all accept her invitation. Raucous fun is had by all – would you expect anything less? The mystery around Tina’s past is heightened by a drunken declaration from her son, Rian.
Episode 10:
Tina prepares to face the Grand Jury. Still reeling from Rian’s revelation, the younger women are determined to solve the mystery of Tina’s past – and present - once and for all. They strategize about the best way to approach her, choosing her favorite restaurant as the site for her interrogation. Who exactly is Tina?!
Future Seasons
Season 2:
Tina appears before the Grand Jury and under oath she shares the origin of her love story with SG. To her delight Dominique assures her that she is free and not needed for further questioning. Tina receives a mysterious note from Leonidas, a Greek arms dealer and close friend to SG. He invites her to dinner in his 5th Avenue duplex – he is under house arrest after all. Through flashbacks, we revisit their whirlwind love triangle. The women ring in the New Year in Paris and with Jeremie’s clues retrace the steps of their shared past life in a French brothel. The young women gravitate to New York one by one. Kate lands a job and moves, Sephie books a one-way ticket to mend a broken heart, and Cordelia runs away from a family scandal that abruptly cuts off her tuition money. As the young women converge in Tina’s apartment, she becomes increasingly uneasy, stuck in a mother/daughter dynamic that she doesn’t want and grapples with how to restore balance.
Season 3:
After a contentious and emotional blowup, the dynamic between the women is tense – just in time for a spiritual retreat on the high seas. Stuck in close quarters on a cruise to Alaska, they test their new agreement to always be honest about their feelings. Back in New York, the young women walk in on Tina and Leonidas’ son in the middle of some carnal pleasure – oops. And what?! Jeremie’s unflappable guidance is urgently needed as the young women each face a setback of their own. Sephie returns from a volunteer trip with a life and death health crisis. Kate’s career stalls and she struggles to find her next steps. Cordelia is reeling at her father’s deception and is having trouble picking up the pieces – the men she is dating aren’t helping. Crisis of faith in Jeremie’s guidance is at a fever pitch and with some no nonsense straight talk from Tina, they take up the gauntlet and forge ahead as advanced adherents of the law of attraction.
SUPPORTING CHARACTERS:
Akhil
SG’s Right Hand Man. A Western-educated Indian man with impeccable fashion sense, he serves as SG’s mouthpiece. He often finds himself torn between his duty to SG and his brotherly affection for Tina.
SG
A charismatic Indian guru and mysterious presence in Tina’s life. His international lifestyle boasts a far-reaching circle of Hollywood celebrities, world leaders and questionable businessmen. SG’s communication with Tina is frequent, typically by phone, text, and his emissary Akhil.
Dev
The volunteer coordinator in Dharamsala, India. An Indian Clark Gable (until he smiles…), his role as rule-enforcer of the program is tested by a budding attraction to Tina.
Pinky
Tina’s Best Friend. A Late Life Lesbian, she fell in love with Dominique after a contentious divorce in her 40’s. She is absent-minded, often late, and a near-professional drunk driver. She has a solid position on Wall Street but moonlights as a stand-up comedian.
Ava
Tina’s Tina. An eighty-one-year-old Belgian Holocaust survivor, she is a force of nature and has enough joie de vivre to rival Tina’s. Their friendship is sacred to both of them and this love extends easily to the younger women.
Lourdes (Lulu)
Rian’s ex-nanny turned Tina’s devoted confidante. Committed to protecting Tina, she juggles her (unpaid) role as Tina’s “Lady-in-Waiting” with a full-time job as an Executive Assistant at the United Nations, Mission of Mexico.
Dominique
Pinky’s partner. A high-powered criminal defense attorney specializing in white collar crime, she works hard and plays hard. She is a proud Black woman and was a card-carrying member of the NAACP before the term ‘woke’ hit the mainstream.
Rian
Tina’s son. He loves his mother deeply but cuts her no slack, often rolling his eyes at her antics. He charmingly welcomes Tina’s new young friends as his surrogate sisters - did he really have a choice?
Pierre:
A French entrepreneur and explorer. Tina’s truest soulmate, but their timing is just off. Life brings them together and pushes them apart, but their love runs deep. Is he her star-crossed lover of her Prince Charming?
Leonidas:
A Greek arms dealer and close friend to SG. Purportedly one of the richest men in the world and Tina’s sometime paramour. Surprising how his loyalty to SG is never challenged by his pursuing Tina. Friends share, right?
Inspired by true events, it’s Hacks meets Your Favorite Whodunit meets Shirley MacLaine. Irresistibly funny, incredibly moving, oh, so otherworldly! And after a global pandemic, who wouldn’t reach for their BEST LIFE EVER?!
