Shivani Maheshwari brings you a list of 10 movies and documentaries on health released in 2017. It is a random selection, with no preference or bias. They were picked up because they featured prominently on social media. The dominance of American staple probably makes a telling statement that more work needs to be done in the health sector in India, in terms of films, features, docudramas, narratives, and motion pictures. Hopefully, 2018 will be better. Watch them if you can. Many are available online for free.
1. Gaga: Five Foot Two
This documentary provides a peek into the life of Lady Gaga, American singer, actress and one of the world’s biggest popstars. Interestingly, amidst all the glamour and glitz, the documentary also delves into her health issue. It is still not widely known that Lady Gaga has been battling fibromyalgia, a disorder characterized by widespread musculoskeletal pain accompanied by fatigue, sleep, memory and mood issues, for some time. “I wish to help raise awareness and connect people who have it,” she has written in one of her tweets.
2. Dina
Dina is an American documentary film, a real-life romantic comedy that is unusually innocent and sweet. It shows the blossoming friendship between an eccentric suburban woman (Dina) and a Walmart door greeter, both middle-aged and on the autism spectrum, fall in love. Dina has what her mother describes as a “smorgasbord” of mental health conditions, but she is portrayed as a very likable, sociable person charmingly candid about her physical and sexual desires. The film takeaway is Dina’s simplicity, staying power and fortitude.
3. Bending the Arc
In 1983, three young people barely out of their teens began a public health revolution by devoting themselves to innovative healthcare in impoverished nations. The groundbreaking work they began in Haiti—creating a remarkable model of how to deliver the highest-quality care in the most unlikely places—would eventually grow to have massive global effects. “Reaching far beyond the issue of health care, Bending the Arc shows how moral imagination, strategy, and sheer will together can change the trajectory of the world, bending the arc of the moral universe closer to justice.”
4. Heal
This is a documentary that reinforces the increasing realization of the phenomenal power of the mind to heal. It brings into sharp focus the mind-body connect and synergy that can be more dynamic and restorative than many modern medicines. Through an anthology of inspiring and emotional stories, Heal takes us on a spiritual journey where we discover that our thoughts, beliefs, and emotions have a huge impact on our health and ability to heal. For some, Heal may hold additional interest as it features Deepak Chopra, world-renowned pioneer in integrative medicine and personal transformation. It is however low on scientific evidence and will not convince skeptics.
5. Overpill
This documentary with a tagline, the darker side of America’s mental health, focuses on the disturbing reality of overdose of medicines. Over 20 million Americans are prescribed medication for a variety of mental disorders. Big pharma companies have a pill available for all ailments, be it anxiety or bipolar disorder or depression. Many of the drugs given are addictive, unhealthy and can have severe, damaging side effects. Supported by real-life cases, Overpill’s mission is to caution and limit prescribed drugs.
6. Unrest
When Harvard PhD student at 28 is afflicted by a mysterious illness that leaves her bedridden, she is traumatized. Doctors are unable to diagnose her ailment and dismiss it as its "all in her head." Undeterred, she turns her camera on herself and her community, a hidden world of millions confined to their homes and bedrooms by ME (myalgic encephalomyelitis), commonly called chronic fatigue syndrome. Unrest is a ‘vulnerable and eloquent personal documentary’ that helps us come closer to this little known, grossly misunderstood disease.
7. Feel rich- Health is the New Wealth
This documentary which addresses the new hop-hop generation redefines the meaning of rich. Rich is about being healthy and robust; it is about being hale and hearty. The film features interviews with iconic artists, producers, urban farmers and meditators who have made dramatic changes in their lives by opening themselves up to new ideas about what it means to be rich. It promotes the benefits of exercise, healthy diet and spiritual wellness. It makes ‘health inspirational, aspirational and sexy’.
8. What the Health
This highly sensational and controversial documentary has kicked up unbridled passion and vitriolic debate on the net with as many supporters as detractors. It is about veganism, a lifestyle, philosophy and dietary choice that has taken the world by storm. The film links chronic diseases and other serious disorders to consumption of meat and dairy products and advocates a plant-based diet. It has been badgered for misrepresentation and misleading facts and has come under fire by the scientific community for some of its sensational claims about non-vegan diets.
9. Kaasav
Hats off to this sensitively crafted award-winning Marathi film that turns the spotlight on mental illness, loneliness and struggle of modern man. It is a heart-felt story of a suicidal young man who is given shelter and hope by a young lady and who nurtures him back to view life anew. It highlights some of the stigma surrounding mental health issues, particularly depression and suggests that through help, care, psychiatry, emotional disturbances, abnormal behaviour and many mental health issues and disorders can be overcome and conquered. Kaasav is truly a landmark film.
10. Shubh Mangal Savdhan
This is a full-on Hindi commercial film that deals with the rarely talked about topic of erectile dysfunction. It is the story of a couple who are coming to terms with the husband's erectile dysfunction. While it has helped improve understanding and remove stigma surrounding men’s sexual health problems in its own style, wish it had offered a more comprehensive and realistic solution and comeback to sexual performance and erectile dysfunction that afflicts a large population of men today.
Tell us if you would like to highlight any other film on health. Write in the comment below
