Akash Joshi’s ‘Take Care’ is a glimpse into a crucial aspect of our lives, that of mental health. It is a short film that is brilliantly constructed and put forth, condensing everything it needs to say in its brief three minute runtime. While the duration of the film may come off as surprising, there is not much that needs to be said for the need to make sure that you are aware about your own mental health and that of the ones you care about. It is not an optional luxury, especially considering the pandemic.
‘Take Care’ invites us into the life of Alok, a man desperately in need of medical care for his daughter, who happens to have Covid-19. While we see Alok conversing with a doctor overseas, who prescribes medication for his daughter, there is a lot that the short film conceals from its audience in its initial stages. What it does drive home, however, is the fact that, for a lot of the people who were affected by Covid-19, immediate medical care was incredibly hard to come by. We, as a global community, were completely ill-prepared for a pandemic of this magnitude.
It is important that I do not give away the plot here. Suffice it to say, Akash Joshi manages to drive home some brutal facts in the span of mere minutes. With a film like ‘Take Care’, Joshi reveals his understanding of the situation we found ourselves in. More importantly, he understood what the pandemic did to the families and friends of Covid-19 patients. The mental anguish and emotional turmoil that those close to the affected individuals faced is not something that they should have had to go through.
Watch ‘Take Care’. It is an important short film regarding the issue of mental health in these desperate times we find ourselves in.
