Promoting Mental Health Literacy in Rural and Urban Kerala, is a mini-conference on how applied theater can contribute to issues around mental health literacy, in this case in the context of Kerala. India. Connecting directly with professionals in India, the session tells the compelling story of a major action research project led by De Montfort University in Leicester (UK) that took place between 2019 and 2021.
The size of this research is impressive, but it all started with a community theatre play that was staged on the streets in a basti (a crowded neighbourhood) in Pune, India, in 2018 and is continuing through the establishment of the MeHeLP foundation in Kerala. This research is a unique collaboration between two major state organizations running mental health clinics in Kerala, the theatre companies Excavate (UK) and Lokadharmi (India), and local filmmakers from Kerala.
Taking the form of a mini-international conference (part in-person, part online) the workshop will bring together different practitioners and clinicians from the UK and India, to explore how community and applied theatre approaches were used to develop conversations across the state, bringing to the forefront the voices of those who are often stigmatised.
The workshop will be presented by Dr Sanjana Kumar, from the Indian theatre and research teams, alongside the artistic director of Excavate, Andy Barrett. We will also have the honour of being joined in person by Dr. Raghu Raghavan, the project investigator of this project with an established health background in India and the UK. We will connect to clinicians based in Kerala who have been involved in the project, to hear their perspective of how the use of theatre and drama may be of value in addressing issues around mental healthcare in India.
Participants will gain an understanding of how community and applied arts may be of help in addressing issues around the perception and treatment of mental health, and of mental health and well-being as a developing global issue. This workshop will be of value to those who are interested in understanding social issues and applied theatre practice in India, are engaged in health-based practices, and are interested in the role of art and theatre in health care.
Excavate and De Montfort University in partnership with the Mental Health Literacy Project India Foundation, with Lokadharmi Theatre, MHAT (Mental Health Action Trust) and Mehac (Mental Health Action).
The workshop will be presented by Dr Sanjana Kumar, from the Indian theatre and research teams, alongside the artistic director of Excavate, Andy Barrett. We will also have the honour of being joined in person by Dr. Raghu Raghavan, the project investigator of this project with an established health background in India and the UK. We will connect to clinicians based in Kerala who have been involved in the project, to hear their perspective of how the use of theatre and drama may be of value in addressing issues around mental healthcare in India.
Participants will gain an understanding of how community and applied arts may be of help in addressing issues around the perception and treatment of mental health, and of mental health and well-being as a developing global issue. This workshop will be of value to those who are interested in understanding social issues and applied theatre practice in India, are engaged in health-based practices, and are interested in the role of art and theatre in health care.
Excavate and De Montfort University in partnership with the Mental Health Literacy Project India Foundation, with Lokadharmi Theatre, MHAT (Mental Health Action Trust) and Mehac (Mental Health Action).