Sentence:  In the beginning Max had no idea she was even a film actress, this girl with the skin the colour of scorched earth, the well-concealed body and the demure manner of a disciple walking in the footsteps of a great <WSD>"rishi</WSD>". 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  ("post-Vedic") A Hindu sage or saint occupying the same position in India history as the patriarchs of other countries, constituting a peculiar class of beings in the early mythical system, as distinct from Asuras, Devas and mortal men.