AWESOME and hard hitting. Review on Devrai - The Sacred Grove Movie

I saw Devrai a couple of days back and I am still under its spell.Its like one of those things -when something you see,read,hear stays with you forever.

I would not like to go into the details of the movie as such,I went through the other reviews and they have done a very good job at that.All I ll say is that everything that makes a movie awesome is awesome in this movie.

Nothing needs to be said about the research;Dr.Anand Nadkarni was the consultant;one need not say anything after that.

The movie very clearly shows to the layman what schizophrenia is all about.What exactly the patient undergoes when that happens.Why the way he behaves is not his fault.How things are so extra ordinarily muddled up in their brains.Point in case being the scene in the movie where at the rehab centre,during the treatment,the lady asks if anyone wants to say something.The protagonist comes forward.Starts his presentation by thanking the crowd for giving him this opportunity.And then starts talking about Devrai.And thats when all the entanglement that exists in his mind comes forward.Its very precisely and clearly shown and enacted as well.Thats the first time in the movie the enigma called schizophrenia strikes you.And strikes you in your face.The reality that is and the fantasy that the patient lives is beautifully interwoven throughout the movie.

Also very clearly shown is the role of the support required.Why unconditional love is so important.The movie makes no bones about the fact that as much as tackling schizophrenia is a struggle for the patient,it is no less for the people surrounding him.It shows the minutest aspects of the problems encountered by the patient's family;in this case his sister's family(husband and a young son)-right from what is perceived as ''social stigma'' to day to day life.

For someone who has a schizophrenia patient in the surrounding,I think this movie can be considered as a reference as to what to do.Ofcourse,if there's a patient in the immediate family ,then specialist advice is needed.

But for a lay man,its an eye opener.Without getting too documentative the movie introduces you to something that is so misunderstood esp. in the Indian scenario.Its one of the few times I have seen an Indian movie talk of something so important without the usual melodramatic fanfare and yet be an enthralling movie viewing experience.

I would like to add that a cousin of mine was in the same rehab centre shown in the movie(in fact he is even present in 1-2 frames in the movie).I met him a day after I saw the movie and now I can see him in a completely different light.Its made me appreciate the kind of efforts and the hardships that he and his family (in his case his younger brother,sister in law and nephew) must have undergone.

Lastly,I hope the fact that the movie is in a regional language doesnt become a hindrance for its viewership.But really in this movie,language doesnt matter.You only need elementary knowledge of Marathi to experience what I have experienced after seeing the movie.