In October 2024, JustDial released a report, which showed that searches related to healthcare had risen by 23% in the period between January and October 2024. And queries for psychologists had surged by 41% indicating that, perhaps, there is a change in attitude toward mental health.
It’s necessary considering that mental wellbeing in India was lower in 2023 compared to 2020, due to raised unemployment rates, higher internet and social media usage, and other factors.
One way to encourage people to seek support is through documentaries. Mental health, when portrayed visually, has a far-reaching effect and deeper memory retention. Particularly, documentaries based on real life.
We have put together four such powerful Indian documentaries that address different aspects of mental health.
Road safety: The Silent Epidemic from The Raahgiri Foundation
Directed by Akshat Gupta, this documentary released in 2023, focuses on the repercussions of a road accident on a family. That fraction of a second when life changes significantly for an entire family.
The Silent Epidemic was selected by the World Health Organization (WHO) as part of its global campaign on road safety awareness. It’s an engrossing documentary that includes personal interviews portraying the lives of individuals who have been trying to come to terms, yet at the same time struggling with life-altering disabilities inflicted by tragic road crashes. It’s an emotional journey but it also shows us their resilience in facing daily challenges arising from their disabilities. With valuable insights from medical and road safety professionals, it’s a documentary that urges individuals and countries to call for more precautions.
Schizophrenia: A Drop of Sunshine from PSBT India
This is a first-hand narrative of Reshma Valliappan, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia and eventually managed to overcome it.
Directed by Aparna Sanyal and released in 2011, the documentary’s underlying message says that treatment works best with the involvement of the person living with the disorder, empowering them, providing them with that agency and space.
In the 40-minute documentary, Reshma’s story unfolds in a personal narrative that is quite chilling to listen to. She woke up one day, hearing voices, and she was soon on a course of strong medicines. But in moments of lucidity, Reshma reads up and gets to know schizophrenia better. Along with medicine, she put in her own efforts by embracing the situation in different ways like painting. Hers is a story that ends in hope as Reshma proves that schizophrenia can be overcome with the right kind of support and inner strength.
Suicide: Leap of Faith by Venkat Bharadwaj
Released in 2019, Venkat Bharadwaj’s 45-minute documentary speaks of suicide and survivors.
The documentary has experts and mental health professionals sharing their perspectives on what causes suicide. Ranging from childhood trauma to social pressures to loneliness, suicide can occur due to an alarmingly long list of factors.
Bharadwaj spent five months researching and talking to doctors, survivors, and families who lost their loved ones to suicide.
“Mental health and suicide are issues that are plaguing our society. I wanted to put together something that would make the common man think. But instead of showcasing the dark side of suicide, the film is motivational and aims to make people think,” Bharadwaj tells The Hindu.
With suicide being a top national public issue in India where suicide rates are the highest in the world, documentaries like this are the need of the hour.
Locked Up and Forgotten: India’s Mental Health Crisis by Vice News
Vice News filmed this 12-minute documentary in Maharashtra in 2015 capturing the trauma faced by those with mental health challenges.
With a focus on women in the village of Chalisgaon in Maharashtra, the documentary highlights the lack of awareness, stigma, and discrimination surrounding mental health issues. At the time, there were 43 (today there are 46) government-run mental health institutions and the documentary takes a hard look at their processes and drawbacks, which include patients being admitted with no proper diagnosis, treated without consent, and so on. It emphasizes the need for a comprehensive overhaul of the mental healthcare system to make it more effective and informed, while also ensuring the protection of patients’ rights.
Bonus recommendation
Atasi by Putul Mahmood
Directed by filmmaker and professor Putul Mahmood, Atasi is a poignant and deeply humane documentary that brings to life the journey of Atasi, a young woman navigating trauma.
Produced by mental health advocate Ratnaboli Ray, this 50-minute film unfolds the powerful story of Atasi, who stays resilient even after years of emotional and physical abuse and reclaims her life. The documentary takes a nuanced, compassionate look at how Atasi was shaped by patriarchy, poverty, and exploitation. It also highlights the often-dismissed struggles of women asserting their independence. For this, Atasi was committed to a mental hospital as her family considered her to be “mad.” However, she manages to find her way out and take control of her life.
Atasi’s story is one of survival, but also of agency and is one to be watched.
We hope the power of these documentaries leave you feeling moved as well as filled with hope. These films not only depict the raw, unfiltered realities faced by those living with mental health conditions but also give voice to their caregivers and loved ones, who often remain the unsung heroes.
Through these powerful visual narratives, we are urged to reflect on our collective responsibility to support those affected and to advocate for a world where mental health is no longer marginalized, but prioritized.
