Devrai
Devrai () is a 2004 Indian Marathi film directed by filmmaker duo Sumitra Bhave–Sunil Sukthankar and produced by the Schizophrenia Awareness Association and K. S. Wani Memorial Trust. The film stars Atul Kulkarni, Sonali Kulkarni, Devika Daftardar, Tushar Dalvi, and Mohan Agashe and was released on 11 March 2004. The film's music is by Shrirang Umarani. It depicts a story of a man who has schizophrenia and is struggling to come to terms with his illness and the frustration of his helpless sister. The film received critical acclaim for the portrayal of schizophrenia and performances of its leads, and won several awards upon its release including four awards: the Best Film, the Best Director, the Best Actor, and the Best Actress award at the 11th Screen Awards (Marathi), the Technical Excellence Award at the International Film Festival of Kerala and was awarded the Best Film on Environment Conservation / Preservation at the 52nd National Film Awards. Atul Kulkarni was awarded with the Special Jury Award at the Mumbai International Film Festival and Sonali Kulkarni bagged the Best Actress Award at the 42nd Maharashtra State Film Awards. Plot
As a child, Shesh Desai an intelligent boy (Atul Kulkarni) grew up with his mother, sister Seena (Sonali Kulkarni), and cousin Kalyani (Devika Daftardar). He loves to spend his time outdoors, amongst nature. As the kids grow older Shesh begins to get attracted to Kalyani. On discovering this his horrified mother forces Kalyani to go back to her father's place, away from the village. This upsets Shesh a lot. Shesh has created an imaginary world centered on his devotion to the Devrai, a sacred grove near his village. He wants to conduct research on the Devrai but his mother refuses to help out with funds as she has limited resources and a daughter to marry off. Shesh doesn't take this well. After failing to graduate from college he is asked to look after the family's mango orchard. The research never progresses. Shesh gradually becomes a loner and eccentric after his mother's death and sister's marriage. A paranoid concern engulfs him that the villagers intend to destroy the Devrai. He becomes attracted to Parvati (Amruta Subhash), the wife of a family servant Shambhu, and fantasises her as a goddess who is an inhabitant of the grove. Seena invites Shesh to her house to celebrate her husband, Sudesh's (Tushar Dalvi) promotion. At the celebration, Shesh gets a panic attack while socialising with guests and becomes furious. Seena tries to offer support to Shesh but Sudesh becomes upset and gets him admitted to a psychiatric facility where he receives treatment by a senior psychiatrist (Mohan Agashe). Shesh keeps visualizing and talking about the Devrai, Parvati. Kalyani makes frequent appearances in his ramblings. The doctors however soon succeed in getting his condition under control. The treatment administered by the team suppresses Shesh's erratic behavior but does not eradicate his imaginary world. Seena's home life and that of her entire family proves to be very stressful after her brother's discharge from the hospital. Shesh initially refuses to take his medications, is mercurial and extremely difficult to deal with. Seena avoids letting Kalyani meet Shesh throughout the ordeal fearful of the consequences of her presence. Soon though help comes in the form of the sessions at a day care center run by a social worker (Jyoti Subhash) for mentally ill patients. There with the help of fellow patients Shesh comes to the realization that he is ill and needs to take responsibility for his own wellbeing. Seena also attends the sessions for caregivers which helps her see the illness in a new light. Shesh slowly starts developing empathy and wishes to engage with his young nephew, who however keeps Shesh at an arms length. A dip in Shesh's condition soon comes about and one night during a frantic conversation with Seena he divulges the information that their help Shambhu has murdered his wife Parvati. Seena breaks down with all the stress in her life. She then meets Kalyani and insists her to make an inquiring call back home. Kalyani does so and talks to a much alive Parvati. Seena can see she has failed to take care of her older brother with minimal help from her grudging husband who has concerns with his son being exposed to this volatile home environment. She agrees to send Shesh back to the village and entreaties her cousin to help take care of him. Kalyani has been living in the city, the life of single working woman. She never did remarry after being widowed at a tender age. After  reminiscing about the happy days of her childhood and youth spent in the quiet and tranquil village she agrees to Seena's proposal. All three of them travel back to their childhood home. There Kalyani along with Parvati and Shambhu put Seena's mind at ease about the care of her schizophrenic brother whereupon she returns home to her family. 