Apr 08, 2005 12:20 PM
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(Updated Apr 08, 2005 07:53 PM)
After Shwaas, which unfortunately missed out on the Oscars this year, comes another thought provoking Marathi film, Devrai. Devrai, which means a Sacred Groove, is India’s answer to ‘A Beautiful Mind’, which had Russel Crowe as the schizophrenic Mathematician, Nash, who uses the power of love and his own mind to overcome his illness. Devrai is one of the first Indian films to take a serious look at mental illness, creating awareness and sympathy for the sufferers and their families.
Devrai, meaning sacred grooves, are patches of virgin forests in India, which are held sacred by the villagers, and are supposed to be under the control of the deities residing there. They have their own delicate ecological balance. Sheesh (Atul Kulkarni) hails from one such village in Maharashtra, where his childhood is spent among these forests, in the company of his sister Seena (Sonali Kulkarni) and his cousin Kalyani. Atul’s tryst with mental illness starts in his teenage years, but being from a rather backward village, he is labeled as ‘Short tempered’, irritable, and ‘badly behaved’. In a series of flashbacks we are informed that his educational graph and his social interactions take a downward spiral, as he becomes withdrawn and combative. Seena is married off to Shirish (Tushar Dalvi), a scientist, well placed in life. Years later, when Sheesh’s illness reached a peak, Seena brings him to Pune, and gets him admitted to a mental hospital.
The entire story, well captured, is about the mental, physical and emotional struggles and problems faced, both by the patient of schizophrenia and by his near and dear ones. Accepting the illness is a big issue; taking care of such a victim is even more taxing. Throughout the film, the focus is on generating awareness and sympathy for the sufferer, as detailed explanations about the illness are provided in many interesting, interactive, dialogue sessions between Seena and the head psychiatrist, Dr. Mohan Agashe.
Eventually, Sheesh does settle down, and leaves for the village, in the company of his childhood sweetheart, Kalyani. He is ill, but knows it, and tries to take charge of his life. The treatment options and the counseling that the patients receive are well portrayed, and should give encouragement to plenty of families.
The film has already won rave reviews, and has grabbed all the 4 awards at the Star Screen awards, namely the best actor, actress, film and director. The direction and performances in this film are mind-boggling. Atul Kulkarni as the schizophrenic is amazing, right from the outbursts, to the body language of the mentally inflicted ones, to the dialogue delivery, replete with the pauses, the odd sounds that these persons make, the occasional drooling of saliva, and the strange withdrawn, lost look, and the shifty eye movements. At some point in the film, the actor becomes the character, and for once, we forget that it is all an act. There must be hardly a handful of actors in this country today who could do a similar role. To say that he has outperformed even Russel Crowe would not be wrong. Sonali Kulkarni, as his sister, who has to maintain the balance between her love for her brother on the one hand, and her cynical husband and son on the other, is excellent, often bringing tears to your eyes. All the others in the cast are uniformly good.
The proceeds of the film will be going to the Schizophrenic Awareness Association, and this noble act itself will ensure the birth of more such films. Only a person who has a schizophrenic at home of in the family will fully appreciate the problems, and this film has brought to the fore this issue indeed very beautifully.
Though the film is in Marathi, the English sub-titles are good, and this film is a must watch. The first stone has been cast, into the vast pool of mental illnesses and their awareness. One hopes there are many more to follow.
