Zindaginama

Zindaginama, a six part series on SonyLIV, reflects not just on mental illnessand the experience of it - but also how it can be triggered by something that no one else can even recognise unless they make a concerted effort to understand. The first story, a sensitive portrayal of an eating disorder, shows you how seemingly innocent remarks about a person's appearance, especially in their formative years, can have a life-altering impact on their self-perception. Each episode marks a new story, as the show traces the trials of people with mental illness, presenting a sensitive, respectful take on it. The second episode, a story about a man suffering from schizophrenia, shows you how even the mere act of crossing a road can feel like a walking through a minefield. The series repeatedly advocates for a deeper, more empathetic understanding of mental illness, how it affects a person, and how commonplace it is. This also might be one of the very first shows to address mental illness as a larger, sociological problem rather than something that is strictly individual. You see how characters suffer also because of cruel and baseless social stigmas that we begin to participate in, without considering the reality of the other person. It also visibilises the labour and the trials of the caregiver, and the empathy that we owe each other. Additionally, it shows how victims of societal abuse, gender-based violence, and other such injustices can also begin to suffer from mental illnesses because of their experience in society. And while it goes for more straighforward solutions, it does acknowledge how unbearably difficult it can be to begin to heal, or to seek out help, or to find someone one can trust in the first place. It underscores the need for patience, care and kinder society.