De Montfort University Leicester (DMU), UK is leading a significant international project to increase the mental health literacy of millions of people in India.

Raghu Raghavan, Professor of Mental Health at DMU, will lead a team of researchers from DMU as well as partners from Loughborough University, University College London (UCL), Middlesex University, Tata Institute of Social Sciences and India’s National Institute of Mental health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) as well as non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in India.

Working with mental health users and their families, this project will gather real experiences relating to the level of awareness of mental illness in both urban and rural communities in the state of Kerala in Southern India.

Researchers will then work with theatre experts in India and the UK to develop an interactive theatre production that will be used to inform local people about mental health literacy.

The project also aims to raise wider awareness of mental health issues in Kerala, India and beyond by working with Indian television stations, newspapers and social media so that more people are able to recognise the signs of mental ill-health and seek appropriate help and support.

The work will focus on four districts of Kerala which have a total population of 16 million.